Puducherry, Sep 9 (IANS): Fishermen in Puducherry have objected to the construction of a fishing harbour at the mouth of Thenpennai River as severe coastal erosion has commenced along the Union Territory's southern coast.

According to people residing in the fishing villages of Moolavalli and Pudukuppam, the sand has started eroding heavily in the area after rocks were dumped for the construction of the fishing harbour.

V. Chandrashekhar, President of Bangaaru Vaickal Neeraadhara Kootamaippu, a movement for protection of water bodies, told IANS that the rocks have blocked the littoral drift of coastal sand movement and this led to the erosion.

The social activist said that this would lead to farmlands being saline and infertile and would also affect all the fishing hamlets.

Local fisherman Swaminathan Sankaran told IANS that "the sea has already come closer by 200 metres due to erosion over the last few years and now it is happening faster. If the sea comes closer, then we cannot go fishing".

The proposed fishing harbour, according to fishermen, will worsen the situation further and completely erode the sand dunes of the region causing saltwater intrusion into the coastal aquifers.

In places like Muthialpet, Solainagar and Vaithikuppam in Puducherry, the TDS level (total dissolved solids) of water is above 3,000, when TDS levels above 300 render the water not good for drinking.

Activists also said that only a scientific approach could prevent erosion and if one structure is created, it will have a cascading effect leading to erosion of sand in areas north of it.