Kendrapara, March 25 -- In a decisive move to safeguard the fragile ecosystem of Bhitarkanika National Park, forest officials from the Kanika Forest Range have demolished 27 illegal prawn dykes that had encroached on over 11 hectares of land.
The action targets structures that violated the Wildlife Protection Act and the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) norms.
According to Manas Kumar Das, the Assistant Conservator of Forests (ACF) of Kanika Forest Range, the prawn mafias had set up unlawful prawn farming operations near the forest and river areas.
These earthen dykes obstructed the natural tidal flow, causing waterlogging in adjacent crop fields and severely impacting the local flora and fauna through chemical use.
"The prawn farms not on...