Odisha is set to be the first state in India to put in place an Integrated Coastal Zone Management Plan (ICZMP) for not only ensuring sustainable management of coastal resources but also combating the challenges posed by climate change and rise in sea level. The plan which will lay out a comprehensive strategy for optimal use and management of the coastal areas and shoreline will be completed in 15 months. The state has, for a first, conducted the Regional Coastal Process Study of its 480km coast to generate voluminous information on erosion, accretion and sand pattern for the coastline that will be the base for the ICZMP.
Odisha, Gujarat and West Bengal had been selected as pilot states to formulate region-specific plans conforming to their unique ecology, culture and demographic features. A proper, scientific coast management plan is imperative for a state like Odisha, which has geographically been at the receiving end with natural calamities like cyclones, floods almost being an annual affair. Coastline erosion poses the biggest challenge and its impact is already being felt strongly. The sea has been pushing in far into human habitations, gobbling up villages almost across the whole length of the coastline. Saline ingress is also adversely affecting agriculture and farm output. Livelihood of millions is at stake. The Odisha ICZMP focuses on evolving strategies and policies that look to the future in terms of maintaining the much-needed balance between development and conservation while safeguarding livelihood of coastal communities. It makes local communities the central players in strategic actions like ecology protection, infrastructure development, devising alternative livelihoods and preserving their cultural heritage.
It, thus, could lay the base for a national plan. With nine coastal states and four Union territories lining along the seas and ocean, India has an enormous coastline of around 7500km. The fate of a huge chunk of India’s population is linked to the coastal ecosystem and sea behaviour. With climate change becoming a reality, efforts to protect and consolidate the shoreline and its resources along with prescribing sustainable management of resources is the need of the hour.