Transfer of oil depot:Orissa Govt's gift to Berhampur

SOSA & City residents protest against the decision
Berhampur: Intellectuals, senior citizens, transporters, filing station owners and residents of the city resented the conspiracy to transfer the Indian Oil Corporation’s oil depot from Berhampur to Jatni. They have decided to burn the effigies of the local leaders and elected representatives, who remain silent against the injustice meted out to the people of South Orissa.
The oil depot established at the Berhampur railway station in 1964 through its 32 retail depots has been fulfilling the requirements of southern districts including far away Maoist-infested districts like Malkangiri, Rayagada and Nayagrah. Oil is being brought here from Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and thousands of people including transporters; truck drivers, labourers and filling station employees depend on this depot for their livelihood.
Now, the authorities have decided to transfer the depot to Jatni and have already stopped supplying oil to the depot. Transfer of the depot to Jatni will increase the price of petrol and diesel to at least 50 paise per litre towards the transportation charges as the filling stations will have to pay an extra transport charge of more than Rs 8 lakh daily. Besides, thousands of people will lose their livelihood. It will also adversely affect the supply of oil to the far away districts particularly the Maoist infested ones. The transfer might affect the industrialization process in view of the presence of the Indian Rare Earths Limited near Chhatrapur, the Gopalpur port, proposed Gopalpur steel plant, titanium plant and other industrial units in the region.
The people from all sections have already started demonstrating against the unjustified move. They have congregated to launch a widespread movement against the leaders and elected representatives, who do not bother to raise their voice against the conspiracy.
At a meeting in which it was decided to burn the effigies of these leaders, Prof Prahallad Panda said that the region, particularly Ganjam district, had played a pioneering role in the formation of the separate Orissa province. Besides, the first three successive Chief Ministers and as many as seven Chief Ministers till date are from this southern region. Yet, none had cared for the development of this region, alleged Prof Panda, adding that even legendary Chief Minister Biju Patnaik had done nothing for this region and now his son Naveen Patnaik has shifted all corporations, institutions, organizations and plants from this region, including the proposed steel plant at Gopalpur to Kalinga Nagar. He further added that the transfer of oil depot from Berhampur to Jatni is the first gift of Naveen Patnaik Government to the people of Berhampur.
Meanwhile the Delhi based South Orissa Student Association (SOSA) in its recently held meeting on May 17 in New Delhi, also decided to protest the move of the state government to shift the oil depot from Berhampur to Jatni and in a letter addressed to the Chief Minister the organization has demanded to revoke the decision immediately and requested to establish the depot near Jagannathpur in the outskirts of the city for the benefit of thousands of poor people of South Orissa.

Expert team makes survey of Gopalpur port area

BERHAMPUR: A high-level expert committee made on-the-spot survey of Gopalpur port area for the environmental clearance of the project. The members of the committee included Director of Ministry of Environment, N.Prasad, Chief Conservator of Forests and regional head of the Ministry of Environment J.K. Tiwari, Director and Special Secretary of State Forest Department Bhagirathi Behera, senior geologist Manmohan Mohanty, Jagannath Bastia of Orissa Beach Protection Forum. This expert committee, which reached the Gopalpur port on May 13 visited the port and the villages in its vicinity. The committee members held discussion with the port officials as well as the traditional fishermen living nearby.
The minor seasonal port at Gopalpur was earlier owned and run by the Orissa govt. The Gopalpur Ports Limited (GPL) is now developing it into an all weather mega port since 2007. The GPL is a consortium of Orissa Stevedores Ltd. (OSL), Noble Group Ltd. of Hong Kong and Sara International Limited. The GPL plans to develop the port at a cost of over 2000 crore rupees. As per the plans the GPL proposes to construct a canal of two-km width and seven-km length in the sea to enable ships to anchor at this port.
According to sources, the members of the committee who came over for on the spot enquiry about environmental matters advised the GPL authorities to start developing a green belt near the port area immediately. They also advised the port officials not to release their wastewater into the sea and to have facility for solid waste management in the port premises. According to sources the report of this committee would decide the environmental clearance of this mega project, which awaits this clearance from central government. The port officials also informed the committee about the social welfare measures they are to take up in the area as per their master plan prepared by IIT Chennai.
The Pioneer

Olive Ridley turtles hatchlings emerge from sandy pits

More than a million baby Olive Ridley sea turtles have started emerging from the sandy nesting grounds at Nasi-1 and Nasi-2 islets under Gahiramatha marine sanctuary of Kendrapara district and Rushikulya river mouth near Berhampur city in Ganjam district, said the divisional forest officer of Bhitarkanika National Park.
After emerging from the nests the turtle hatchlings started their journey towards the sea, said the officer. About 1.67 lakh female Olive Ridley turtles had laid eggs in the last week of March on the two islets, which cover only two km length and are surrounded by the sea for which the mortality of the baby turtles is not high here.
The female turtles drag themselves ashore, dig a nest with their back flippers, deposit about 100 eggs and conceal the nest before returning to the sea. The eggs incubate in the warm sand and the female turtles never visit their nests again to take care of the eggs or the hatchlings. They arrive at the coast in the dead of night and after laying eggs they get back into the deep-sea water. Hatchlings emerge from these eggs after 45-60 days. It is nature’s rare phenomenon that babies grow without their mother.
Informing about the mortality rate of the endangered species he said only one egg out of every 1000 laid ultimately hatch. The Ridleys had skipped the annual sojourn to the beach for laying eggs in the last two years
New Indian Express

Hopes of salt producers of Humma in Ganjam district

BERHAMPUR: Harsh summer without rainfall has rekindled hopes of good harvest for the salt producers of Ganjam district. Several months of dry weather without rainfall has given a fillip to salt production. Although Orissa has a long coastline, the salt production is quite low in the State. Major salt farms are operational in Humma near Berhampur city in Ganjam district. K. Duryodhan Reddy, president of HBSPSCS, said this year they hoped to have a total production of around 40,000 tons of salt from the beds near Humma. Salt production in organized way is not new to this area. The HBSPSCS was formed in 1942. Apart from it salt beds in this area are also under private lease of persons and firms who operate from outside through agents.
The salt producers of the area are however not satisfied with their salt production. They feel it could have increased more this year due to conducive climatic condition. Mr Reddy alleged that the flow of salt water to the salt beds of Huma area through the channel of British era had got reduced during recent times. According to him the flow of salt water from the Chilika lake to the salt beds has got reduced due to deepening of the Chilika canal recently. More water is flowing into the Chilika canals rather than entering the channel directed towards the salt beds.
To study the problem a joint team of Chilika Development Authority (CDA) officials, Ganjam district officials and representatives of salt producers would make a field study on May 13. This study may lead to some measures so that more salt water flows through the channel to the salt beds for salt production. Orissa consumes more than four lakh tons of salt in a year. Jayashree Chemicals, soda-making unit in Ganjam needs 50,000 tons of salt every year. Mr Reddy said long coastal stretch of Orissa has the scope of becoming self-sufficient in salt production. But the salt workers are yet to be trained to adopt scientific method of salt production, which includes use of sub-soil saline water from sea.

The Hindu

Lakhs throng Thakurani Yatra on last day, Berhampur bears the look of a fancy dress show

BERHAMPUR: Now its curtains down on the carnival! Lakhs of people were eager enough to bid a tearfull farewell to their daughter, revered Goddess Thakurani (treated as the daughter of the city who visits her parents every two years) as they have to wait for another two years to witness such a carnival. Lakhs of people from Orissa and from neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, Chhatisgarh, West Bengal and Jharkhand thronged silk city Berhampur on the last day of the famous Thakuarni Yatra to have a glimpse of the Goddess and to be part of the grand festivity that is associated with the carnival. The Yatra was celebrated here after an interval of two years. The Yatra started on April 8, when the Thakurani came to her paternal house at the Deshibehera Street here and stayed at the temporary abode for 27 days. On the last day, Goddess Thakurani returned back to the home of her in-laws, the Budhi Thakurani Temple, in the City.

About the Carnival

Thakurani Yatra is a unique biennial celebration of the carnival spirit that lurks in every heart, whether young or old. The whole city of Berhampur in south Orissa bears the look of a fancy dress show during the Thakurani Yatra festival. The whole city jumps into joyous carnival when the reigning deity of the city goddess Budhi Thakurani makes the journey from her permanent temple to a temporary temple at Desibehera Street .It is regarded as the journey of the deity, the role of a married woman, to her parental abode from her in-laws' home. The carnival continues till the deity returns back to her temple after 24 days. As an offering to the deity, during the festival, thousands of people of all ages don the garb of mythological characters. Brothers become Pandavas. Transcending time, Krishna and Hanuman walk the streets hand in hand.Demons and witches jump into the crowd. To mark the religious harmony of the city participants of the festival enact even crucifixion of Christ. Some even try to advertise brands on their painted bodies. Mass carnival rallies by hundreds of persons with tonsured heads mocking the false godmen, a rally by more than 108 children and aged people dressed as 'Vanar Sena' of Lord Ram, procession of people dressed as Buddhist monks or followers of Guru Nanak add colour to this festival. This festival is incomplete without the famous tiger dance of Ganjam district. With their body painted with tiger stripes, people move around performing tiger dance to the beats of drums and 'Changu'.

Source: The Hindu, The Pioneer, Kalingatimes

Andhra Bank opens new zonal office in Berhampur

BERHAMPUR: Andhra Bank opened up its new zonal office in Berhampur on Friday. This new zonal office is to manage the branches of the bank in districts of south Orissa and adjoining North Andhra Pradesh district of Srikakulam.
According to senior branch manager of the main branch of the bank in the city, B.C.Panda this new zonal office would be headed by the zonal manager, T.Venkaiah. As part of the inauguration ceremony Mr. Venkaiah attended a customers’ meet at the Chinna Bazar branch of the Andhra Bank in the city.

Source: The Hindu