Former Union Minister Srikant Jena seeks revival of coastal Shelter Belt project

BHUBANESWAR:  Amid talks of a long-term plan to strengthen coastal embankments in Odisha in the aftermath of cyclone Yaas, former Union Minister Srikant Jena has asked the State government  to revive the Coastal Shelter Belt Project, started in 1971.  

Jena said the project was started after the 1971 cyclone which claimed over 10,000 lives in the State. 

A coalition government of Utkal Congress and Swatantra Party was in power then and former Chief Minister Biju Patnaik had played a crucial role in implementation of the project.

The project envisaged plantation of trees on one km wide area along the 480 km-long Odisha coast.

Jena said revival of the project now will cost around Rs 250 crore to the government and create employment opportunities for a large number of people in coastal Odisha.

Stating that construction of a concrete wall along the coast cannot be long-lasting, the former union minister said creation of mangrove forest is the only solution. 

For that the government will have to form an authority to stop large-scale deforestation and regulate prawn cultivation, he added.