Odisha's Seven-Month Fishing Ban for Olive Ridley Turtles: Sanctuaries, Turtle Excluder Devices and the US Shrimp Ban
Odisha's forest department started its yearly seven-month fishing ban on 1 November 2026. It will last until 31 May 2027.
The ban protects Olive Ridley sea turtles, which come to Odisha's coastal waters around November to mate. Females usually come ashore to lay eggs from around March.
The two main breeding grounds are Gahirmatha beach (Kendrapara district) and Rushikulya beach (Ganjam district). Inside the Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary (declared in 1997, about 1,435 sq km of sea), fishing is not allowed within 20 km of the coast.
The department runs 14 turtle protection camps (four on offshore islands: Madali, Sasanipada, Ekakula and Babubali) and four patrol boats. Marine police and the Coast Guard help.
Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) are now compulsory for trawlers. In October, the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) gave 1,200 TEDs free to Odisha trawler owners, bought with Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) funds (about ₹28,000 each).
TEDs matter for trade too. Since 2019 the United States has blocked imports of India's wild-caught shrimp over turtle deaths in fishing nets. MPEDA estimates the loss at about ₹4,500 crore (around US$550 million).
Olive Ridley Sea Turtle: Biology, Conservation Status, and India's Role
The Olive Ridley is one of the smallest sea turtles in the world. Its scientific name is Lepidochelys olivacea, and it gets its common name from the olive-green colour of its shell. It lives in the warm waters of the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic Oceans. It is famous for one rare habit: thousands of females come ashore together on the same beach, over a few nights, to lay eggs. This mass nesting is called an arribada.
The seven-month fishing ban that started on 1 November 2026 matches the time when Olive Ridleys gather near Odisha's coast to mate and later nest. The closed zones around Gahirmatha and Rushikulya aim to keep trawler nets away during this period. Making Turtle Excluder Devices compulsory targets the turtle's biggest threat: drowning as bycatch.
Turtle Excluder Device (TED): Shrimp Trade and Sea Turtle Protection
A Turtle Excluder Device (TED) is a simple metal grid fitted inside a fishing trawl net. Small shrimp pass through the gaps in the grid and are caught. Big animals like sea turtles hit the grid and are pushed out through an opening in the net. So the fisher keeps the shrimp, and the turtle swims away alive.
Odisha has made TEDs compulsory and MPEDA has handed out 1,200 TEDs free using PMMSY funds. This serves two goals at once: fewer Olive Ridleys drowning in trawl nets, and a step towards getting the US to certify India again so that wild-caught shrimp exports can resume.
- Odisha fishing ban: 1 November 2026 to 31 May 2027 (seven months)
- No fishing within 20 km of the coast in Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary
- Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary: declared 1997; about 1,435 sq km of sea between Hukitola and Dhamara; 14 buoys placed in 2023 to mark its boundary
- About 6,06,933 Olive Ridleys nested at Gahirmatha from 5 to 10 March 2025
- No arribada on the Odisha coast in 2026; Gahirmatha also missed mass nesting in 1982, 1988, 1997 and 2002
- 14 turtle protection camps (4 offshore: Madali, Sasanipada, Ekakula, Babubali); 4 patrol boats
- 1,200 TEDs given free by MPEDA in Odisha; about ₹28,000 each; funded under PMMSY
- Fishers fear 10–20% catch loss from TEDs; MPEDA studies show 1–5%
- US restriction on Indian wild-caught shrimp since 2019 under Section 609 of US Public Law 101-162
- India's wild-caught shrimp exports: 153,286 tonnes (2018-19) to 65,882 tonnes (2023-24); estimated loss about ₹4,500 crore
- Odisha hosts about 50% of the world's and about 90% of India's Olive Ridleys