Kerala - Kannur   

Turtle hatchlings emerge from hatchery

Staff Reporter

SETTING THEM FREE: A foreign tourist among those watching Olive Ridley sea turtle hatchlings emerging from a temporary hatchery at Muzhappilangad in Kannur on Friday.

KANNUR: It was a rare experience for them. People living along the Muzhappilangad beach were elated when 60 Olive Ridley turtle hatchlings emerged from a hatchery in the area on Friday.

The people had been waiting since, for the first time, 80 sea turtle eggs were collected and kept in the hatchery on December 15. It took 55 days for them to see the light of day.

The hatchery was set up in November under a joint initiative of the Muzhappilangad grama panchayat and the Adventure Academy to protect the eggs laid on the beach. As many as 150 eggs collected in the second batch have been kept in another hatchery.

"It is for the first time in Kannur that sea turtle eggs have been collected for hatching, and our first initiative has turned out to be a success,'' said A.T. Sebastian, special officer of the academy. The initiative was inspired by turtle egg protection measures by volunteers in Kozhikode and Kasaragod districts, he said.

A volunteer force of local people, named Theera Sena, was formed under the initiative of the academy and the panchayat to collect the eggs. An incentive of Rs. 250 was given to each collector.

District Collector Ishita Roy was among those who reached the beach to see the hatchlings emerging from the eggs. A few tourists from Sweden and France were among the 300-odd people who turned out to the drive-in beach, a major tourist destination in the region, to see the event. Panchayat president V. Prabhakaran was present.

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