Bhubaneswar: Forest department officials seized two fishing trawlers and apprehended 19 fishermen for allegedly carrying out illegal fishing inside the Gahiramatha Marine Wildlife Sanctuary in Kendrapara district on Tuesday.
Officials said staff of the Gahirmatha Wildlife Range spotted the trawlers during routine patrolling about 4 km from Madeli Mouth. The trawlers were allegedly using trawling and gill nets inside the protected area.
The occupants failed to produce valid documents or permission for entering the sanctuary and carrying out fishing activities, an official said. The seized items include two trawlers, two GPS sets, two VHF sets, 10 trawling nets, 11 gill nets and around 40 kg of marine fish. Two wildlife offence cases have been registered against the accused.
Fishing is prohibited round the year inside Gahirmatha, which has been accorded the status of a marine sanctuary and is known as the world’s largest rookery of Olive Ridley sea turtles.
