Ipsa Tripathy
Bhubaneswar: On November 1, a seasonal fishing ban will come into force along stretches of Odisha’s coast, as it does every year. For most people in Bhubaneswar, the date may pass unnoticed. In fishing villages across Kendrapara, Puri and Ganjam, however, it marks the beginning of a difficult few months. Fishing activity is restricted to protect olive ridley sea turtles as they gather offshore and prepare for one of the most remarkable events in marine life.
Every year, olive ridley turtles return to Odisha’s coast in extraordinary numbers. They gather in the Bay of Bengal before coming ashore to lay their eggs at Gahirmatha, Rushikulya and the Devi river mouth. The mass nesting event, known as an arribada, draws attention from conservationists around the world. Yet behind the spectacle lies a more complicated story involving uncertain nesting patterns, fishing nets, coastal protection and the livelihoods of thousands of fishing families. The question is not simply whether the turtles will return this season. It is whether Odisha can protect them while ensuring that the people who depend on these waters are not left to bear the cost alone.
The arrival
Arribada is a Spanish word meaning “arrival”. It describes the extraordinary sight of thousands, sometimes hundreds of thousands, of female olive ridley turtles gathering on a beach to lay their eggs over a short period. Odisha is one of the world’s most important locations for this behaviour, with Gahirmatha in Kendrapara, Rushikulya in Ganjam and the Devi river mouth in Puri serving as major nesting areas.
A female olive ridley typically lays around 100 to 120 eggs in a nest, although clutch sizes vary. She digs a chamber in the sand, deposits her eggs and covers them before returning to the sea. Incubation generally takes several weeks, often around 45 to 60 days depending on temperature and other conditions. When the hatchlings emerge, they make their way towards the water, beginning a journey in which only a small proportion will survive to adulthood.
The scale of nesting in Odisha can be remarkable. In 2025, reports recorded 6,98,718 turtles nesting at Rushikulya during the first phase of mass nesting between February 16 and 23. Gahirmatha followed with a reported 6,06,933 turtles nesting between March 5 and 10. Such numbers illustrate the importance of Odisha’s beaches to the species.
Rushikulya has also seen a substantial rise in recorded nesting over the past two decades. Conservation work by forest personnel and local volunteers, including members of the Rushikulya Sea Turtle Protection Committee, has helped protect nesting beaches and monitor the turtles. Their work is often carried out quietly, through night patrols, beach monitoring and efforts to keep people and disturbances away from nesting areas.
The year the turtles stayed away
The 2026 season brought a surprise. For the first time in 12 years, Gahirmatha did not record a mass nesting event, despite preparations at key nesting islands, including Nasi 1, Nasi 2 and Eakakulanasi. Rushikulya also recorded a sharp decline, with about 2.05 lakh turtles reported nesting compared with the much higher total recorded there the previous year.
The absence of mass nesting at Gahirmatha was particularly puzzling because turtles had reportedly gathered offshore. Environmentalist Hemant Rout pointed to several possible explanations, including coastal erosion, climate change, illegal fishing and untimely rainfall. But no single cause has been established. Even officials responsible for the sanctuary acknowledged the difficulty of explaining why the turtles did not come ashore in large numbers.
A missed arribada does not automatically mean that a population is collapsing. Gahirmatha has experienced seasons without mass nesting before, including reported skips in 2014, 2008, 2002, 1998, 1997, 1988 and 1982. Researchers have long recognised that mass nesting is variable, and the timing and intensity of an event can change from year to year.
Rainfall, sea conditions, beach characteristics and other environmental factors may influence nesting. Research has also examined the possible role of lunar cycles in synchronising the arrival of turtles. These factors are useful clues, but they do not provide a simple formula for predicting an arribada. Scientists need long-term observations of nesting beaches, offshore turtle movements and environmental conditions to understand why a mass nesting event occurs in one year and not another.
The decline at Rushikulya in 2026 deserves the same careful attention. One season’s figures cannot establish a long-term population trend, but a substantial change warrants continued monitoring. The challenge is to distinguish natural variation from changes caused by human activity or shifting environmental conditions.
The problem beneath the waves
While a missed nesting season raises questions, dead turtles on the beach reveal a more immediate threat. Carcasses have been reported along Odisha’s coast in large numbers. In early 2021, at least 800 dead turtles were found along a stretch near Gahirmatha, while a 2024 survey reported around 1,600 carcasses on beaches in Puri district.
One major cause is accidental capture in fishing gear. Olive ridley turtles must surface to breathe, and when trapped in fishing nets they can drown. Trawling and other fishing activities can therefore cause substantial mortality, particularly when they overlap with areas used by turtles.
Turtle excluder devices, commonly known as TEDs, are designed to reduce this risk. These devices provide an escape opening through which turtles and some other large animals can leave a trawl net while the intended catch remains inside. Their effectiveness depends on correct design, installation and use, as well as proper monitoring and enforcement.
Despite legal requirements and repeated calls for wider adoption, the use of TEDs has remained a concern in Odisha. Conservation experts have questioned whether fishing vessels are using them consistently. The issue is not merely a lack of technology; it is whether regulations are followed and whether the authorities have the resources to monitor fishing activity effectively.
Fishing restrictions also apply in important turtle areas. A Central Empowered Committee recommendation has been associated with restrictions on trawling within 20 kilometres of the high-tide line near Gahirmatha, Devi and Rushikulya during the November-to-May period. The precise restrictions differ by location and legal order, and the Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary has additional protections. Enforcement has not always been uniform across all three areas, leaving concerns about fishing pressure near nesting grounds.
Fishers caught in the middle
Conservation becomes more difficult when restrictions affect the people whose livelihoods depend on the sea. For fishing families, a seasonal ban means months of reduced access to fishing grounds at a time when household expenses continue. In 2023, reports indicated that restrictions around the river mouths affected approximately 10,600 fishing families.
Fishers’ organisations have repeatedly raised concerns about lost income and the adequacy of compensation. When assistance is delayed or insufficient, families may struggle to pay for food, education, fuel and debt repayments. The pressure can encourage some people to fish illegally, undermining the very rules intended to protect turtles.
Enforcement records illustrate the scale of this challenge. During the 2018–19 ban period, authorities reportedly seized 102 boats and trawlers and arrested 832 fishermen for illegal fishing in the Gahirmatha area. Such figures show that restrictions alone cannot solve the problem. Effective conservation also needs credible alternatives and support for the people affected by the rules.
Compensation for lost fishing days has been discussed for years, but fishers continue to question whether the support reaches them adequately and on time. Transparent eligibility rules, timely payments and participation by fishing communities in decisions could make restrictions more workable. Conservation is more likely to endure when people understand the reasons for the rules and can afford to follow them.
Technology may help improve monitoring. Odisha has considered fitting transponders to mechanised fishing boats so that their movements can be tracked near sensitive turtle areas. Researchers have also tagged thousands of turtles during nesting seasons to learn more about their movements and return patterns. Such work can help identify important offshore habitats and improve conservation planning, although tagging alone cannot prevent fishing-related deaths.
What to watch this season
As the seasonal restrictions begin, attention will turn to the waters off Gahirmatha, Rushikulya and the Devi river mouth. Will Gahirmatha record mass nesting again? Will Rushikulya’s numbers rise after the sharp decline in 2026? And can improved enforcement reduce the number of turtles that die in fishing gear?
These questions will take time to answer. Turtle arrivals do not follow a fixed calendar, and the absence of an early nesting event does not necessarily mean that the season has failed. What matters is the evidence gathered over the coming months: offshore sightings, nesting activity, beach conditions, hatchling emergence and records of turtle mortality.
The coming season should also be judged by what happens beyond the nesting beaches. Fishing restrictions need to be enforced consistently, turtle excluder devices must be used where required, and compensation arrangements should recognise the real costs faced by fishing households. Local volunteers and communities need continued support for their role in protecting nesting sites.
Olive ridley turtles have returned to Odisha’s coast for generations, but their future is not guaranteed by that history alone. Their survival depends on the condition of nesting beaches, the safety of offshore waters and the decisions people make about how those waters are used.
The arribada may last only a few nights, but protecting it is a year-round responsibility. The turtles need a safe route to the shore and back to the sea. The fishing communities need a fair way to live alongside them. Odisha’s conservation effort will be strongest when it recognises both.
