CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court has directed the Chief Executive of Chilika Development Authority (CDA) to ensure that motorboats are not used by fishermen in Mangalajodi, located on the banks of Chilika lake which is a haven for migratory birds.
The division bench of Chief Justice S Muralidhar and Justice AK Mohapatra was on Friday hearing a PIL filed by Debakar Behera, a fisherman, seeking a declaration of Mangalajodi as a ‘silent zone’ and imposing restriction on the movement of motorboats in the 10 sq km freshwater area of the lake.
The bench asked the Chief Executive, CDA, Sushant Nanda to visit the area and hold a consultation with the fishermen. “They must be impressed upon to completely avoid using motorboats while traversing the Mangalajodi water body,” it stated.
Nanda has also been told to examine another plea by two other fishermen Pradip Behera and Nibash Behera who are concerned about stopping the operation of motorboats in the water body.
Advocate Adish Aggarwala appearing on behalf of the interveners stated that any restriction on use of motorboats should not be confined only to Mangalajodi but be applicable to all such critical wetland areas in Odisha including the Nalabana bird sanctuary.
District Fisheries Officer Sashank Sahoo who was present during the virtual hearing informed the court that one of the conditions on which licences were issued for operating such motorboats was that they will avoid using the motors while traversing the Mangalajodi water body.
Sahoo further said that the stand of the Forest department is that the pristine nature of the water body must be preserved to ensure that there is no disturbance caused to the migratory birds, particularly during the winter months. The Forest department is creating awareness amongst the fishermen in the area in this regard, he stated. The bench posted the matter to February 18.