JOIN USShe walks on the wild side
Until some years ago, he would dig out the leathery, cricket-ball sized turtle eggs from sand pits and use them to play cricket with his friends. And he was not the only one doing so in the fishing village of Periya Neelangarai on the East Coast Road (ECR), a few kilometres from Chennai. Today, however, young Pugazharasan is a turtle conservationist.
In fact, during the nesting season of Olive Ridley turtles, from January to May each year, if you head towards the Coromandel Coast at night, you are likely to find an eclectic bunch of people – school and college kids, lungi-clad fishermen and white collar types – patrolling the beach. Why? Because even though this species of sea turtle is hardy, it faces multiple threats and needs protection.
The turtles and turtle eggs are often savaged by people, stray dogs and crows.
That is why the informal protection squads on the beaches as well as the Kadal Aamai Paadukaavalar (Sea Turtle Protection Force or STPF), which comprises over 165 fishermen living along the Coromandel Coast, are such a boon.
How has turtle conservation become a priority for the citizens of Chennai and those in its neighbouring towns? For this one must credit artist-conservationist Dr Supraja Dharini.
She has not only converted youngsters like Pugazharasan into ‘turtle protectors’, but has also created a sea change in the attitudes of the local community towards the endangered turtles.
In fact, since 2002, more than 44,654 hatchlings have been safely released into the sea, thanks to Dharini’s initiatives. She has helped remove tonnes of debris from the Chennai coast with the help of the Indian Coast Guard, National Institute of Ocean Technology, South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme, and Loyola College.
She has campaigned for the protection of sea turtles with thousands of students in Tamil Nadu – even in towns as far flung as Sivakasi – who now know how crucial it is to provide a safe haven for migrating turtles.
It’s Dharini’s efforts that have brought together a city youngster like Robin, who is preparing for the IAS exams, and fishermen like Pugazharasan, to work together for a common cause.
“I have been working with her for eight years to save the turtles, and now I see a definite change in our fishing community. A year ago, some fishermen used to chop off the flippers of turtles caught in their nets, because they didn’t want to cut their nets. Today, they gently set them free,” says Pugazharasan.
From being a successful artist – she runs her own art studio, Kalakruti – to becoming a saviour of turtles, it’s been an interesting transition for Dharini.
It was a dead turtle she noticed during a walk on the Neelangarai shore that triggered the change.
“I noticed that it had been killed from cuts sustained from sharp wires, perhaps fishing nets,” she recalls. On further investigation, she found out that many such dead turtles were washed ashore regularly between January and March.
The sight of the dead turtle brought back conservationist Jane Goodall’s words she had heard on a television programme: ‘Each and every individual can make a difference’.
“I decided that I would make a difference,” Dharini says. She went with fishermen on their catamarans and trawlers to gauge what exactly created this pointless massacre.
She discovered that fishing nets needed turtle extruders, a device attached to the net that allows turtles to escape from the net, leaving the fish behind.
And, more significantly, she understood that awareness-building amongst the fishing community was crucial.
So, she toured village after village, talking about how important turtles are for sustaining fish in the sea, upon which rested the community’s livelihood.
Once the fishing community was won over, it was time to get the youth involved. Dharini also set up TREE (Trust for Environment, Education, Conservation and Community development) Foundation in October 2002.
She now plans to start a marine biodiversity conservation research centre with a fully-equipped aquarium that would help create more bonding between humans and turtles.
Her good work hasn’t gone unnoticed. She was conferred the Whitley Associate Award for 2009-2010, the Disney Worldwide Conservation Award, the Sea World and Bush Garden Conservation Award, and the Peoples’ Trust for Endangered Species Award.
Called the Gardeners of the Sea, because they help sea plants grow faster, turtles figure on the protected creatures’ list of India’s Environment and Forests Ministry. And yet, unlike its more famous fellow list-member, the tiger, there are not many who undertake awareness drives for turtle conversation.
For now, its survival rests on people like Dharini, her friends and her dedicated protection squads.