File fresh report on illegal prawn gheries in Chilika, HC tells Odisha govt

CUTTACK: The Orissa high court on Monday asked the state government to file a fresh status report on the current situation of illegal prawn farms in the Chilika lake area in detail by September 16.
The direction came after the Advocate General's oral submission claiming that the area under illegal prawn cultivation had decreased in the Chilika area was countered by Amicus Curia.
The court was hearing a case registered on the direction of the Supreme Court of India for the protection of Bhitarkanika National Park and Chilika Lake.
In pursuance of a high court direction, the state government had constituted a committee headed by the additional chief secretary forest and the environment department for coordinating the eviction of prawn gheries or earthen enclosures.
While the court was taking stock of the progress of clearance of illegal prawn farms, advocate general Ashok Parija claimed that the illegal prawn farms in the Chilika area had been reduced in numbers.
Amicus Curia Mohit Agarwal on the other hand disputed the advocate general's oral submission and claimed that the area used for prawn cultivation had almost doubled in a year, which was evident from the government records itself.
Taking note of Amicus Curia's claim, the division bench of Chief Justice K S Jhaveri and Justice K R Mohapatra posted the matter to September 16 for hearing along with the state government's fresh status report. The bench directed the state government to submit the status report by way of an affidavit.
According to the affidavits filed in the high court by the collectors of Puri, Ganjam and Khurda districts, around 16,000 acre area was under illegal prawn farming in the Chilika lake area by March 2018.
The affidavit submitted by the special secretary of the forest & environment department, K Murugesan, in the high court on February 18, 2019, said a total of 21,370 acre area was under unauthorized prawn cultivation in Chilika.