Astaranga: Forest department officials Tuesday seized a trawler operating in prohibited zone of Devi river here in Puri district, violating the fishing ban imposed by the department for the protection of Olive Ridley turtles. Six crew members have also been detained. Contravening the fishing ban imposed since November 1, numerous trawlers are operating in Devi river mouth prohibited zone, said sources. The Forest Department has seized three trawlers within a period of 19 days of the ban’s enforcement, according to the sources. Astaranga Forest department has seized a fishing trawler named ‘Ma Kali’ (registration number: IND-OR-05MM-337) from the restricted zone.
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The owner of the trawler is reportedly from Nuagada region. The seizure occurred at 5am Tuesday while the trawler was engaged in fishing. The operation carried out by the Forest department team and Turtle Squad included Astaranga Forest Range Officer Monalisa Mohapatra, forest staff members Manas Ranjan Behera, Subhashish Biswal and Bhavagrahi Sethi, along with five members of the Turtle Protection Team and patrolling personnel. Upon bringing the trawler ashore, the seized catch was auctioned. The haul included 260 kg B-class fish, 50 kg crabs, and 70 kg prawn. Present during the auction were assistant fisheries officer Satyabrata Das, Manas Parida, and Sagar Mitra representatives Biswajit Behura, Krishna Biswal and Arjit Pradhan.