Villagers come to the rescue of scorched turtles

BERHAMPUR (Orissa): Villagers have come to the rescue of about 500 fresh water turtles, reeling under the scorching summer in Ganjam district, by getting diverted water from a canal to their drying pond.

Residents of Gollia village, 70 kms from here, found that the turtles, who have been living for a long time in the pond, were hit hard this year as the temperature rose and the pond started drying up.

"These creatures were in miserable condition though none of them died due to scarcity of water", Ashok Nanda, a villager, said.

The local people brought the matter to the notice of the divisional forest officer (DFO), Ghumusar (South Division).

"When I came to know about the condition of the turtles due to water scarcity, I immediately approached the irrigation department and they assured that water will be released from the Baghua reservoir into the pond", said the DFO B K Mohanty.

"It is the villagers who have been protecting these turtles, treating them as an avatar of Vishnu. It is the only place in the state where such a large number of fresh water turtles are found", wildlife experts said.