Sarita Fernandes
As part of my dissertation, I had to interview various stakeholders directly or indirectly associated with coastal policies in Goa. I had interviewed a few TSL personnel from the Turtle conservation programme in Morjim and their informal interview revealed certain violations that reduces their capacity to a really low and helpless degree to conserve or protect turtles. These men are local volunteers from neighbouring villages of Morjim, and have been conducting this work, voluntarily since 1989. They are recognised by the forest department of Goa as TSL (Temporary Service Labour) and have to report this work to the forest officers.
The increasing shack encroachments piling every year in Morjim, with delayed demolitions and use of banned jet skis in this beach that could hit and kill mother turtles and also physically kill baby turtles have increased the strain of their work, without any formal training or skills in how to tackle these issues. Lack of staff is another problem as they are required to physically shift turtle nests from various places from where the mother turtle lays her eggs on the whole beach, and place them in the protected, particular nests within the 1 ½ km reserved for turtles. They can officially only report about anything, to the forest rangers or officers, who take up their complaints at their discretion.
It’ll be at a great loss if these skilled, experienced men are self-compelled to leave these jobs because of their work circumstances and reduced capacities in fighting on the other end that address them as temporary labour than skilled local personnel.
The Forest Department and the Government of Goa can do a lot by encouraging more youth to join these conservation programmes in a place devoid of skilled employment opportunities apart from unskilled jobs from shacks and resorts.
These men, stand as the only strand for sustaining turtle nestings and hatchlings in Goa and complete shack encroachment, and they stand at their lowest debacle of hope in their work. They cannot report all this to the Media, as they stand at a disadvantage of losing their jobs.
Public attention, may help these men in curbing certain, if not all violations for the next tourist season in October.
