CHILIKA WETLANDS Back to previous page          Click on areas                 Background     View slideshow Chilika is the largest brackish water lake in Asia and also the second largest lake in the world. Chilika is situated between 19º28' and 19º54' North latitude and 85º05' and 85º 38' East longitude. A mix of estuarine, marine and freshwater ecosystem is observed here and the lagoon has a long history of sustainable fishing. According to the Directorate of Fisheries Statistics 2000-01, the wetland supports 122,339 fisher folk who live in the 137 villages near Chilika. Based on highly productive ecosystem, rich biodiversity and socio-economic importance, Chilika was designated as a Ramsar site in 1981. It has also found its position in the list of wetlands selected for intensive conservation and management by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF), Government of India. The Nalaban Island within the lagoon is notified as a "bird sanctuary" under Wild Life (protection) Act in 1987. Some rare, vulnerable and endangered animal species listed in the IUCN (International Union of Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) inhabit the lagoon area for the whole or at least part of their life cycle. It supports the largest congregation of aquatic birds in the country, particularly during the winter. Satapada is a place in this wetland, which hosts famous dolphins. The lagoon has a great value in preserving genetic diversity because of the variety of habitats, flora and fauna. In addition to its importance for water birds and biodiversity in general, significant numbers of people are dependent upon the lake's resource. Due to serious degradation brought mainly by siltation and choking of the seawater inlet channel, the decrease in fish productivity, and an overall loss of biodiversity, Chilika Lake was added to the list of Ramsar sites in danger- the Montreux Record in 1993. To address the ecological problems of the lagoon, Chilika Development Authority (CDA) was created in 1992. It implemented a bold programme of action to restore the ecosystem and to improve the socio-economic conditions of the communities living around the lagoon and on its islands. The lagoon was later on removed from the Montreux Record in 2002 after a detailed survey by the Ramsar advisory mission. The ecological problems in the Chilika lagoon exist till today. The threats are: Siltation due to littoral drift and sediments from the inland river systems. Shrinkage of water surface area. Choking of the inlet channel as well as shifting of the mouth connecting to the sea. Decrease in salinity and fishery resources. Proliferation of fresh water invasive species an overall loss of biodiversity with decline in productivity adversely affecting the livelihood of the community that depended on it. Fights between fishermen and non-fishermen communities about fishing rights in the lake and consequent court cases. In early nineties the lake was 914 sq km in area, now it is less than 800 sq km. The major threat comes from the fight between the traditional and non-traditional fishermen. The non-fishermen community uses the unsustainable methods of shrimp farming to exploit the lake’s resources. NGOs and concerned people in this area have come together several times to save the rights of the fishermen community. Public Interest litigations were filed and protest marches were made.  A proper decision is yet to be made by the state government on this issue.                               Links       Down To Earth Dolphin populations increases in Chilika A recent study reported a fractional increase in the population of Irrawaddy dolphins in Orissa’s Chilika lake. The dolphin population in Chilika in Khurda district had gone up from 131 last year to 135 this year, said a February 2007 report by the Chilika Development Authority (cda), a government body. Read More… Chilika fisherfolk relieved Traditional fisherfolk of Chilika lake in Orissa’s Mayurbhanj district heaved a sigh of relief when the “Orissa Fishing in Chilika Regulation Bill” was not tabled in the recently concluded session of the state assembly. Read More… Follow up The Chilika lake is still dying. But there are indications that once the Ramsar International Mission submits its report, the lagoon may be out of the Montreaux Record. Read More… Tatas to move out The Orissa government and the house of Tatas, who jointly own the Rs 20-crore Chilika Aquatic Farms Ltd (CAFL), have agreed to move their operations away from the lake. Read more... No dropping anchor The impending Lok Sabha and state assembly polls have brought a brief respite to Orissa's 2 lakh-odd traditional fisherfolk who eke a living off Chilika lake. Read more... Lessons to be learnt from Chilika EVERYONE recognises the importance of forests. We have over the years set up several structures and evolved policies to try and conserve them. How effective these are is, of course, another question. Read more... Adrift and Isolated The proposed law that was meant to empower Chilika's traditional fisherfolk leaves them feeling Read more... Mafias rule the Chilika waters A committee set up by the Bhubaneswar High Court has confirmed that mafias control the prawn trade in Orissa's Chilika lake. Read more... The rued lagoon THE abundance of fish and crab in Chilika will soon become a thing of the past, if there is no check on the increasing pressure of human activity in the region. A recent study which voiced these Read more... Chilika rights Chief minister Biju Patnaik's attempt to wriggle off the Chilika prawn project hook has left him impaled even more firmly. The onus of proving the Chilika Aquatic Farm Ltd (CAFL) project is Read more... Diminishing returns Traditional fisherfolk of Chilika marginalized Read more... Net loss Fishing practices in Chilika are threatening the Irrawaddy dolphin, which is not only rare but also little known Read more... The prawn rush The local fishing community around Chilika continues being terrorised by a mafia bent on silencing popular discontent against the infiltration of outsiders out to mint gold by farming prawn in the Read more... We are not afraid to lay down more lives for our rights Chilika, Asia s largest brackish water lake in Orissa, is in the midst of a controversy that refuses to die. At stake is the livelihood of hundreds of fisherfolk and the lake itself. The fisherfolk have launched a movement to fight for their rights. Not Read more... Fishy facts The monsoon session of the Orissa Assembly had witnessed uproarious scenes on the prevailing illegal prawn culture in the state and the consequent damages to the coastline and mangrove forests. Read more... RESEARCH PAPERS Conservation of Environment and Protection of Marginalized Fishing Communities of Lake Chilika in Orissa, India. Read more... Fisheries in Chilika lake: how community access and control impacts their management. Conservation of endangered flora and fauna of Chilika Lake     BOOKS: - Kalyanwala.S with Alkazi.F and Farrell.M, 1997, The Chilika Lake Adventure. Published by Centre for Science and environment.                                         CHRONOLOGY               1991: “lease policy” was proposed which divided the whole fishing sources of the Lake into ‘Capture’ and Culture’ and allowed the non-fishermen of the locality to involve themselves in ‘Shrimp Culture’ in the Lake. 1991: Chilika Aquatic Farms Limited (CAFL)-a joint project by the government of Orissa and Tata was implemented. 1991: Chilika Banchao Anadolan (The Save Chilika Movement) began in 1991 against the TATA's project and other illegal prawn cultivators. 1993: Orissa HIgh Court gave a ruling affirming the rights of traditional fisherfolk in Chilika, banned modern prawn culture and directed the state government to demolish all prawn gherries which was illegal. 1994: Tatas moved their operation away from the lake  1994: Revision of the 1991 lease policy to define ‘capture’ and ‘culture’ sources and a role to Fishery Department. But the revised lease proposal did not make any significant change over. 1995: National Environmental Engineering Research Institute, Nagpur, Central Board for Prevention and Control of Water Pollution, Dr. K. Alagarswamy report came out with recommendations to save the cultural source. 1996: The Supreme Court of India issued a historical judgement against aquaculture in Chilika based on these reports. The Court held that the intensified shrimp farming culture by modern methods is violative of constitutional provisions and central acts, especially the Environment Protection Act. Therefore it cannot be permitted to operate. 1997: Orissa legislative assembly constituted a sub-committee to look at shrimp culture in Chilika Lake. The committee allowed the practice of leasing out some portions of Chilika Lake for prawn culture. 1999: The “Chilika Macchhyajibi Mahasangha” started a campaign to implement Supreme Court orders and fulfil their nine point demand. The fishworker organisation then gave a 24 hour ultimatum to demolish all prawn infrastructures, which lapsed on May 29th. After the deadline they themselves destroyed about 11 illegal prawn farms. Police firing on fishermen. 2000: P.K. Tripathy Commission constituted to enquire into the police firing. 2001: The government suspended lease for shrimp culture in Chilika. 2002: Fishing In Chilika (Regulation) Bill 2002 passed by the government. The bill apparently protected the traditional rights of the fishermen by giving only 30 per cent fishing rights to non-fisherfolk. 2002: The Jan Adalat demanded the withdrawal of the Chilika (Regulation) Bill 2002. 2004: The government tried to table the bill in the winter session of Orissa legislative assembly. Fisherfolks protest against the sharing of the waterbody’s resources. 2005: Fishermens’ march demanding withdrawal of the anti-fisherfolk ‘Black Chilika Bill’. 2007: P.K. Tripathy Commission report published. Justified the police firing at Sorana in May. Chilika Matsyajibi Mahasangh rejects the report. 2008: Chilika Macchhyajibi Mahasangha threatens to stop the vehicular movement on the roads of Bhubaneshwar if the bill was tabled. October 2009: An announcement was made by the chief minister of Orissa on the establishment of National Institute on “Management of wetlands and coastal ecosystem” in collaboration with the Ministry ofForest and Environment.                                           PEOPLE               RESEARCHER Sarmistha Pattanaik Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies in Environment and Development (CISED) ISEC Campus, Nagarabhavi, Bangalore 560 072, Karnataka, India Telephone: 91-80-23217013-extn-5468 E-mail: spattanaik2@yahoo.co.uk, spattanaik@isec.ac.in Prabir Kumar Naik 99, Maruti Residency, P.O. Raghunathpur (via Barang), Bhubaneshwar 754 005, India e-mail: pkr_pitha9@rediffmail.com Nagothu Udaya Sekhar Development Section, Norwegian Environmental Alliance Group, Norwegian Institute for Water Research, P.O. Box 173, Kjelsas, Oslo N-0411, Norway ADVOCATE Bishwapriya Kanungo 2122 Sabara Sahi Lane Post Budheshwari Colony Bhubaneshwar 751006 Mobile: (0)9861392021   NGO Chilika Matsyajibi Mahasanghgeneral Anadi Behera General Secretary Saraswati Nagar,PO-Odal Via Nirakarpur, Dist-Khurda Mobile: (0)9937466112. PALLISHREE 191, DHARMA VIHAR PO- Khandagiri BHUBANESWAR Orissa Phone-91-674- 2351350 E-mail:  pallishree137@hotmail.com pallishree137@rediffmail.com Website: - http://www.pallishreeindia.org/ GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENT Chilika Development Authority Plot No. C-11 , BJB Nagar Bhubaneswar - 751014 Orissa , India Phone - 91(674)2434044/2436654 Fax - 91(674)2434485 Email: chilika@chilika.com Website: - http://www.chilika.com/