Gujarat: Pirotan Island in Jamnagar likely to reopen for public soon

RAJKOT: In good news for wildlife enthusiasts, the Pirotan Island in Jamnagar — known for its rich marine biodiversity — may be reopened for the general public in near future. The islands have been off limits for visitors for the last four and half years due to security reasons. However, the forest department is planning to frame guidelines and throw open the island for the public again.
The easternmost island in the Marine National Park, Pirotan is spread over an area of 3 square kilometres.The island, which gets partly submerged during high tide, is located 12km from the coast in the Gulf of Kutch.
Pirotan was the only island near Jamnagar’s Bedi and Rozi port where visitors were allowed. Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB) is handling the island’s port.
Safety of the visitors remains a focal point of the plans to reopen the island, forest officials said. The island is cut-off from the mobile network, there’s no electricity and also no food availability. Marooned due to high tide, which submerges part of the island, a visitor can get stranded here in absence of a trained guide and adequate knowledge about the local environment. Also, at present there is no mechanism to raise an alarm in case of an emergency.
R Senthil, deputy conservator of forest, Marine National Park, said that the island will be open to the public once the safety guidelines are approved by higher authorities. “We will prepare guidelines in coordination with agencies like Indian Coast Guard, GMB, Police and district administration to allow visitors considering all the safety aspects,” Senthil said.
The coast guard will come into picture in case a rescue operation is needed while GMB’s jetty will be required for visitors to board the ship. The district administration’s overall monitoring is also required. According to forest officials, the district administration is currently busy in conducting the gram panchayat elections. Once the polls get over the guidelines will be prepared. Pirotan Island near Bedi, Rozi and Nava port of Jamnagar is a treasure trove of marine life. Apart from a lot many species of crabs, the island is home to sea scorpions, sea snakes, octopus, sea worms and other marine creatures. Sea birds like pelicans and gulls among others add to the biodiversity of the island.
The visitors were prohibited after complaints of several intrusions were received a few years back.