MLA Suresh Routray opposes the government's decision to grant Blue Flag status to three more beaches
MLA Suresh Routray opposes the government's decision to grant Blue Flag status to three more beaches
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Puri: Suresh Kumar Routray, a Jatani MLA, has spoken out against the state government's efforts to obtain Blue Flag Beach accreditation for three more beaches in the district.
Routray told reporters following a meeting of the Puri Belabhumi Suraksha Samiti (Puri Beach Protection Committee) on the matter that the beaches' Blue Flag status will deprive hundreds of small traders of their source of income. The state government should look into these traders' condition because they rely on the beach for their livelihood.
“Puri is a holy area, and the government should conserve the district's heritage resources, particularly the beaches. Furthermore, if the beach is transformed, the people who rely on it for a living would be displaced,” stated the Congress MLA.
Puri beach received the coveted Blue Flag designation from the Copenhagen-based Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) on October 11 of last year.
Following this, chief minister Naveen Patnaik stated last month that five other beaches around the Odisha coast will be developed in order to receive the moniker, which would increase the state's tourism potential.
Pati Sonapur and Haripur in Ganjam district, and Muhan, Niladri, and Jahania in Puri district, are among the beaches chosen for the project.
