Odisha to construct 380 km saline embankment to prevent storm surge

To protect Odisha's coast which is vulnerable to tidal surge, the state Water Resources department has chalked out a plan to construct a 380 km saline embankment

To protect Odisha's coast

which is vulnerable to tidal surge, the state Water Resources (WR) department has chalked out a plan to construct a 380 km saline embankment at an estimated investment of Rs 1,944 crore.

This was stated by Engineer-in-chief, Water Resources department, Jyotirmay Rath on Saturday after a meeting chaired by WR secretary Anu Garg.

Rath said: "A detailed project report (DPR) is being prepared under the supervision of Water Resources department for the first-phase construction of a 380 km saline embankment at a projected cost of Rs 1,944 crore".

He said the construction of saline embankment will be done by packing stones along the coast. To prevent these stones from getting separated during high tide, they will be covered with iron nets. In order to prevent strong onshore wind speed, there will be massive plantations along the embankments, he said.

Rath said that the 52 km saline embankment in the districts of Kendrapada, Jagatsinghpur, Puri and Ganjam, constructed between 2013 and 2016 at a cost of Rs 135 crore, is still intact and protecting the coast.

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik during the review meeting with Prime Minister Modi on Friday has stated that the state has a long coastline of 480 km, a major portion of which is vulnerable to storm surge.

Saline water entered into around 125 villages due to storm surge as an impact of the cyclone Yaas which made landfall near Dhamra in Bhadrak district.