Olive Ridley Festival Draws Crowds to Srikakulam’s Baruva Beach
Over 1,500 turtles released; conservation efforts continue till June in Srikakulam
Visakhapatnam: The two-day Olive Ridley festival marking the release of turtle hatchlings into the sea concluded on Sunday at the Baruva Beach in Srikakulam district.
On the first day of the festival on Saturday, 1,500 hatchlings had been released. On Sunday, authorities released 80 turtles.
District forest officer S. Venkatesh wants more and more people to participate in the festival. He pointed out Olive Ridley turtles come ashore to lay between 80–120 eggs in the sand before returning to the sea.
"We operate 13 conservation centres along the beach across the district in partnership with the Tree Foundation. Volunteers monitor the beaches daily and identify nesting sites by tracking turtle footprints. The eggs are carefully collected and transferred to the protected conservation centres where they hatch after approximately 45–50 days. The hatchlings are then released into the sea during early morning hours between 5:15 a.m. and 6:00 a.m.,” the DFO explained.
Speaking to this correspondent on Sunday, overall district coordinator K. Someswar Rao disclosed that approximately 370,000 eggs have been collected this season. “We will continue releasing hatchlings into the sea till the first week of June,” he pointed out.
Someswar said their last year's conservation efforts resulted in the successful release of 125,000 hatchlings into the sea.
The two-day festival also featured paramotor flying organised by Vihanga Adventures in collaboration with the Andhra Pradesh Tourism Department.
