PARADIP: Thousands of dead fish have been found floating in Sahara Machyadiha river here since Monday, triggering panic among locals and fishermen community.
Officials of Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) collected samples of river water and sent it for examination on Tuesday. Locals spotted dead fish in the river and alleged that the river could have been polluted by effluents of local fertiliser units.
Similar fish deaths were reported from Kaudia river and Atharbanki creek here last year in August. The livelihood of the fishermen community has been affected with a drastic fall in catch due to dwindling population of fish in rivers and creeks.
Apart from water pollution, the effluents have affected trees which have withered due to the hazardous chemicals.
A week back, leaves of trees in Paradip had withered but officials of OSPCB are yet to ascertain the reason behind the incident. OSPCB Regional Officer Mukesh Mahaling said a team of officials has collected water samples from three locations of the river and sent them for tests.