The pilot trials would be taken up soon on 120-km stretch of the Orissa coast- the 40-km Chilika-Gopalpur stretch and the 80-km Paradip-Dhamara stretch- under the Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) programme.
The ICZM project which is being taken up at a cost of Rs 227 crore, will be implemented in two phases. Around Rs 40 crore would be invested in Phase-I of the project which will take five years.
The ICZM project was formally launched today. A high-level meeting was held at the state secretariat under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. The state energy minister Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak; Chief Secretary B K Patnaik; director (environment) of the Orissa government Bhagirathi Behera and Chief Executive of Chilika Development Agency A K Patnaik were present on the occasion.
"The pilot trials for the ICZM project would begin soon on the Chilika-Gopalpur and Paradip-Dhamara stretches. The project would be made participatory so that locals are benefited to the maximum extent. As a part of the ICZM project, a solid waste management plant would be set up at Paradip and 600 SHGs (Self-Help Groups) would be formed for fishermen. Heritage and eco-tourism projects would also be taken up under the project”, said Patnaik.
Around four lakh people in the state would be benefited by the project. The World Bank has cleared an assistance of Rs 227 crore for the implementation of the ICZM project in Orissa.
While 90 per cent of the project cost will come as soft loan from the World Bank, the remaining 10 per cent will be contributed by the state government. The state finance department has already released around Rs five crore towards implementation cost of the project for the first year.
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The objectives of the ICZM project are protection against coastal erosion, protection against salt water ingress, offering livelihood support to the local fishermen community vulnerable to disasters as well as capacity building of the community.
Besides Orissa, the ICZM project will be implemented in the coastal regions of West Bengal and Gujarat on a pilot basis. The total cost for project implementation in the three states has been worked out to be Rs 1156 crore.These investments include interventions such as mangrove plantation, regeneration of coral reefs, cleaning up of beaches, sewerage and solid waste management, conservation of cultural heritage, and a number of activities aimed at enhancing the livelihood of coastal communities.
The ICZMP will help build the appropriate institutional arrangements, capacity and advanced knowledge systems needed to implement the national programme. The project would develop capacity and institutions to effectively implement the CRZ Notification 1991, to control pollution of coastal waters and to expand livelihood options for coastal communities.