KENDRAPARA: A turtle patrol vessel of the Forest department was attacked mid-sea by the crew members of at least 12 trawlers engaged in illegal fishing within Gahirmatha marine sanctuary here on Monday evening. However, no one suffered any injury in the attack which took place near Madali island.
Forest range officer of Gahirmatha marine sanctuary Pradosh Maharana said it was an organised attack by the crew members of a fleet of around 12 fishing trawlers. The turtle patrol vessel found the trawlers fishing illegally in the prohibited seawater of Gahirmatha. When the forest personnel asked the fishermen to surrender, the crew members of the trawlers surrounded and attacked the forest team.
Maharana further said as the two speed boats provided by the government have become defunct, forest personnel are forced to hire trawlers to chase fishing vessels and hence, facing a lot of difficulties. As per the order of the central empowered committee constituted by the Supreme Court, the state government purchased two speed boats in 2016 to help forest personnel protect the endangered Olive Ridleys in Gahirmatha. Both the boats were purchased from Mumbai at a cost of `3 crore each.
“Two years back, one of the boats became defunct and last year, the other one developed technical snag. Both the interceptor boats are now lying unused near the office of Gahirmatha marine sanctuary,” he added.