[Watch] Olive Ridleys arrive at Odisha’s Gahirmatha; Fishing banned for 7 months

Kendrapara: Odisha government today imposed a seven-month ban on fishing to protect endangered Olive Ridley sea turtles at Gahirmatha marine sanctuary in Kendrapara district.

The ban will be in force from November 1, 2019 till May 31, 2020.

The forest department has imposed the restriction prohibiting the fishermen from fishing within 20 km off the coastline in the turtle nesting sites.

Watch video: 

The endangered Olive Ridley turtles arrive every year during winter for mass nesting in Rushikulya River mouth and Gahirmatha marine sanctuary. They lay eggs in March following mating and the hatchlings come out by May.

Notably, Odisha has three nesting sites — Gahirmatha beach in Kendrapada district, Devi river mouth in Puri district and Rushikulya river mouth in Ganjam district. The Gahirmatha turtle sanctuary is one of the world’s largest turtle nesting sites.