A workshop on ‘Coastal Regulation Zone Act and Amendment’, organised by the Malabar Coastal Institute for Training, Research and Action here on Saturday, called upon the State government to strengthen the activities of the Kerala Coastal Zone Management Authority (KCZMA) to save the over-exploited coastlines of Kerala and allow it to function as an autonomous body.
The workshop addressed by experts from the sector pinpointed that the district-level monitoring committees of KCZMA should be made functional at the earliest to prevent unlawful business ventures on the coastlines. Also, the existing monitoring facilities to keep tab on CRZ violations should be strengthened, they demanded.
Some of the experts who attended the discussions suggested the government to ban the construction of luxury flats on seashores violating the CRZ norms. If tourism projects were given clearance, it should be implemented with the total cooperation of fishermen from the region and holding the principle of inclusive tourism, they explained.
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Former Director General of Coast Guard Prabhakaran Paleri, Principal Scientist from the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute P.K. Asokan, and KCZMA member Baby John were present to lead the workshop, which was organised as part of submitting recommendations to the Ministry of Forest and Environment on the subject.