Odisha forest officials arrest 19 fishermen, seize four trawlers for sneaking into prohibited turtle concentration zone

Kendrapara: Forest personnel  have arrested 19 fishermen from Olive Ridley turtle concentration zones at Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary in Odisha’s Kendrapara district. With this, the number of people arrested for sneaking into the prohibited sea territory has risen to more than 200 since last month, a forest official said. [caption id=“attachment_4015385” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. PTI[/caption] Four fishing trawlers were also seized by the turtle protection squad during the raid on Wednesday, he said. The vessels had trespassed into the prohibited corridors of the sanctuary, contravening the provisions of Wildlife Protection Act, Orissa Marine Fishing Regulation Act and the mandatory rules of marine sanctuary. Sea patrolling has been stepped up in the sanctuary to keep the turtle concentration zones free from human interference. The state government has clamped a ban on trawl fishing along the 20-kilometre stretch between Dhamra river mouth and Devi river mouth in view of the annual nesting season of endangered Olive Ridley turtles.