Officials release baby turtles into Bay of Bengal

Forest Department to start more hatchlings along the coast in state 

NELLORE: Officials of the Forest Department has appealed to the public, particularly the people staying in sea bed villages, to save Olive Ridley Turtles, which are almost on the verge of extinct.
Olive Ridley turtles, also known as Pacific Ridley turtles, have become the endangered species and the government has started hatchling the smallest species of sea turtles.
Chief Conservator of Forests (Guntur Circle) Anoop Singh, Joint Collector Saurabh Gaur, AP Forest Development Corporation Nellore Regional Manager B.K. Singh, DFO G.V. Ramana Reddy and other staff released about 56 just-born turtles in to the Bay of Bengal from Ramachandrapuram beach, located in Vidavalur mandal in Nellore district on Wednesday.
The CCF said the Forest department in association with Nellore Tree Root and Shoots, an NGO involved in hatching eggs and protecting the Olive Ridley turtles, is running hatcheries along the sea coast in Nellore and Guntur districts.
The NGO hatched about 1,100 eggs and released the baby turtles into the sea in the last one year. The officials are planning to start more hatcheries along the coast in other districts in the state, said Mr. Singh.
Assistant Conservator of Forests (Kavali division) M. Bhaskar Raju who was monitoring the project said, the turtles come out from waters during nesting season, lay eggs in sand on the beach and go into the waters.
The NGO representatives, who were trained by the Wild Life authorities of Forest department, will protect eggs, hatch them and release the hatchlings into sea.
A team of officials were constituted to protect the endangered sea species, said Mr. Raju.

source:the hindu