Pics: Dayanand Kukkaje
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (SP)

Mangaluru, Aug 8: Sea erosion has been a recurring phenomenon in coastal regions all over the country, and every year, hundreds of crores of rupees are gobbled up by surging waves in the form of land, vegetation, property etc and also boulders and sand bags heaped to thwart advancing waves. Although a number of measures had been taken in the past for this purpose, none of them had proved to be foolproof, even after huge investments were made towards them.

Sea erosion is not a phenomenon exclusively witnessed during rainy season. Many coasts suffer from erosion even during summer. In Dakshina Kannada district, Ullal, Someshwar, and Kotepura sections of the coast get hit by sea erosion year after year, and a permanent solution has remained elusive.

The state government has taken up construction of permanent protective walls against sea erosion at a cost of Rs 236 crore under Asian Development Bank scheme. Now, the tetrapods have been stacked at Tannirbavi beach in line with the ones seen at Marine Drive, Mumbai, and so far, have succeeded in their purpose of withstanding onslaught of sea.

Some claim that the government has taken up this task at a spot where this problem is not grave, and which is not in need of such measures. The sand bags heaped at Ullal towards constructing permanent barriers have reached the bottom of the sea. It is felt that huge tetrapods coupled with breakwaters would be able to stymie the aggression of waves at such places.

Deputy commissioner of Dakshina Kannada district, A B Ibrahim, notes that huge boulders stacked along the coast had repeatedly been washed away by the sea. The work could not be sustained for long because of shortage of boulders.

"On an experimental basis, tetrapods are being used to stall sea erosion at Tannirbavi. Many countries including USA, Japan and South America have tasted success out of tetrapod experiment. In Mumbai too, this method has successfully blocked advancement of sea. Now, the task of stacking tetrapods, which are made by using cement and granite, at Tannirbavi beach has been going on in full swing. Each of these tetrapods cost nearly Rs 10,000 and the seashore in the city will needs lacs of such tetrapods," he says.

Many people said Tannirbavi has never experienced rage of the sea. They feel that tetrapods should have been used in Ullal and Someshwar beaches, where the situation is really critical, and where the experiment of sand bags and boulders have failed. Some suspect that Tannirbavi was chosen for this project because of the fact that a private golf club will be coming up there shortly.