CAUSES AND MITIGATION OF NATURAL HAZARDS ALONG COASTLINES UNDER EROSION-A CASE STUDY ON PURI BEACH, ODISHA

Abstract

The beginning of 21" century saw the population of human civilisation crossing 7 billion mark. And this proves the value of land for us. As land is a thing that human race can not create on its own, so the growing demand on land makes it invaluable. And coastal erosion is one of the major risks that is significantly contributing towards the loss of habitable landmasses. Odisha is a coastal state with 6 out of total 30 districts are on the coast of Bay of Bengal. The total coastline expands over 480 km. The total population of these six districts is 1,10, 03, 668 and is distributed in an area of 21,887 km' with a population density of 503 persons/km2 (2011 census). Asia's largest brackish water lagoon, the Chili/ca, the Bhitarakanika wildlife sanctuary, world's largest known nesting beaches of olive Ridley sea turtles, the Gahirmatha and Rushikulya are located on this coast. Chandipur, DRDO's missile testing area is also located on this coast. Paradip, Dhamra and Gopalpur ports also prove the importance of this coast_ My study area, Puri is one of the most important tourist place in India and World. Since 2004 Great Indian Ocean tsunami the coastal erosion problem in this area has caught a lot of media attention. Although the loss due to coastal erosion is not more, but this problem is new to this area and may cause significant damage in future. It's always better to take preventive measures before any unprecedented event. The problem of coastal erosion in Puri area is much influenced by the natural hazards like cyclones, tsunamis. With increasing number of hotels and resorts the natural sand dunes are greatly affected. The dredging of the natural sand bar developed on the mouth of the river Mangala also disturbs the sediment budget of the area. And thus, adjoining places get affected. With adoption of proper mitigation and prevention measures, the ongoing coastal erosion and future risks can be significantly reduced and avoided.