Name: Pavan Sabbithi
Country: India
State: Andra Pradesh
Site: Kakinada Bay / Coringa
What is your personal relation to the natural coastal or marine site you represent?
First of all I was fortunate to represent this beautiful place where it is blessed with natural mangroves, scenic beauties near the mouth of river Godavari where it joins with Bay of Bengal, the mangroves are giving greater protection from heavy cyclones formed in the sea and saving our lives our crops and our cattle’s since ages, so we love and respect the mangroves so much as it shelters many species of aves,reptile and amphibians. Specially where this place provides niche to endangered species like otters, saltwater crocodiles, Olive riddle turtles ,mud skippers,crabs,shells,fishes migratory birds and beautiful flora.During rainy season a special fish called Hilsa comes to river godavari as anadromous migration for breeding I always love and enjoy to live with this beautiful creatures and mangroves where their existence and progress linked with my life
What are the specific problems and threats of your natural coastal or marine site?
The main threats are mangrove deforestation for firewood and wood for construction, overexploitation of molluscs (removed annually from Kakinada Bay and Coringa mudflats for lime production, Species of bivalves (Placuna placenta and Anadara granosa) and gastropods (Cerithidea cingulata ,and Telescopium telescopium) are regularly handpicked and shrimp seeds tiger shrimp (Penaeus monodon) for aquaculture industry is another major activity which is likely to have adverse impact, cattle grazing, effluents from nearby industries, discharges from agricultural fields, conversion for aquaculture for rearing crabs and prawns, introduced aquatic plants in to this area replacing the existing flora and fauna over harvesting of resources leading in the reduction of biodiversity and degradation of marine habitats and species.
Why do you think is it important to safeguard your natural coastal or marine site?
Coringa is the second largest mangrove formation in India next to sundarbans, it houses salt water crocodiles which were at the verge of extinction and to protect the other endangered species such as olive ridely turtles and Indian otters, this is also important place for breeding and nesting for about 120 species of resident and migratory birds, and also it is a place of some endangered mangrove species there is a immense need for conservation.