Karwar (ENS): The Ravindranath Tagore beach, also known as Karwar beach is one point attraction for the locals and tourists who come to this coastal city. But slowly the beach is losing its shore area and that is worrying the local conservationists. They say that unplanned and unnecessary constructions are dotting the 3-km-long shore of Karwar beach which could harm the aesthetic view of the beach.

With the global warming, the sea level is rising globally, constructions on the shores are being discouraged, but two new restaurants have been sanctioned on Karwar beach very close to the shore. To accomplish the construction, large scale of mud was dumped on the shore triggering a backlash from the locals. A few months ago, people of Karwar were saddened after the NHAI took out the sun point hills to widen the road. It was one of the famous tourist spots of the city and previous administration had planned a rope way from the sunset point till the Ravindranath Tagore beach.

It is said that to save a hotel property of a politician, the road was allowed to widen near the hillock. The civic activists here point out that for very long the administration is unable to give fish market a permanent space. For the last one month the temporary fish market is opened on Ravindranath Tagore beach.

“You cannot bring everything on one beach. The beach in Karwar has become dump yard for all unwanted projects. The administration is unable to stop the sewage that is entering the beach. The fish market has been set up on the beach which threatens the water quality after release of highly decomposed ice water into the beach. Several government buildings and educational institutions are located on the beach. The shore has little space left for the tourist and locals to enter,” says V N Naik, a retired marine biologist from Karwar.

Recently three acres were given to Coast Guard to create infrastructure for parking of Hover craft amidst opposition from the locals. The expansion of Karwar Port will wipe out a small beach named Aligadda which used to be local tourist point.