Study of Kutch Coast

People, Environment and Livelihoods

Every Desert has Oases

Kutch Land Area 45652 sq km

(Largest District in India, next is
Ladakh)

Rann of Kutch occupies 30,000 sq

km or nearly 2/3 area.

Kutch Population (2001 Census)

15,83,225
 •Mangroves :
The area under mangrove cover along the Gujarat Coast is the second largest,
after Sunderbans along the Indian coast. Gulf of Kutch accounts to 93% of
Gujarat mangroves.

•Coral Reefs:
Gulf of Kutch Islands in the Marine National Park bordering the southern shore of the Gulf
support coral and coral reefs. The age of these reefs varies from 5240 years at
Salaya to 45,000 years at Okha .

•Marine Algae:
The Gulf has more than 210 Species of marine algae. These marine algae, in
combination with the corals and Mangroves, provide a very healthy, useful
and conducive ecosystem for the diverse flora and fauna existing in the Gulf.

•Creeks and Estuaries:

A vast network of creeks, estuaries, mudflats and intertidal area exists due to
the conical shape of Gulf of Kutch.

• Fisheries:
Gulf of Kutch provides suitable ecological and environmental conditions and
sustains a variety of exploitable species fishes with an annual average catch of
1.4 lakh tons.

•Marine National Park:

An area of 457.92 sq. km in Gulf of Kutch was declared as Marine Sanctuary
and 162.89 sq. km was notified as Marine National Park.
 Four Zones of Kutch Coast
(based on characteristics of coastline and land up to 2 km from the coast)

Zone 2: Anjar, Mundra Zone 1: Bhachau, Gandhidham

– Up to 5 km Intertidal Zone – Up to 20 km Intertidal Zone

– Full time Fishing
– Small extent of Saltpans
– Presence of Mangroves
– Multi-crop Farming
– Significant Animal Husbandry
– Has 90% of all Kutch saltpans
– Seasonal Prawn Fishing
– Wild Ass Sanctuary
– Little or no farming
– Little or no Animal Husbandry
 Four Zones of Kutch Coast
(based on characteristics of coastline and land up to 2 km from the coast)

Zone 4: Jakhau to Lakhpat Zone 3: Mandvi to Jakhau

– Up to 10 km intertidal Zone – Up to 100 m Intertidal Zone

– Large tracts of Mangroves – Sandy Beaches

– Part-time Pagadiya Fishing – Part-time Pagadiya Fishing

– Single-crop Farming – 3 ATM fishing settlements

– Significant Animal Husbandry – Multi-crop Farming, Cotton Zone

– No Salt pans – Significant Animal Husbandry

– Very little salt pans
Zone 1 : Bhachau - Gandhidham
Traditional Fishing
Prawn fishing for 3 months
July to September.
Boat Fishing for Remaining 8 mons
No of Banders : 7
No of Households : 616
Annual Fish production : 5,251 MT
Annual Revenue : Rs. 24.3 Cr

Issues

- Saltpans
- Block access to settlement/sea
- Affect fish production by blocking creeks, Fisherfolks’
discharging brine into the sea. Houses

- Industries (Kandla Port/SEZ)

- Displacement of fishing settlements
- Affect fish production by discharging
Canal made by salt pan
pollutants into the sea. owners, without even a
small bridge for fisherfolk
to cross the canal.
Salt Pans
Inland and Marine salt
Salt making by Solar evaporation
No of Labourers(Agarias) – nearly 60,000
Annual Salt production is 196 Lac MT
Annual Revenue Rs. 979 Cr

Issues

- Industries located on the Highway

- Nearly 5% of salt lost due to black soot
deposits
- Quality of salt affected by pollution

- Wildlife Sanctuary
- New Leases not being given for expansion
of salt pans
Scrub Forest
3-4 km of scrub forest beyond salt pans
Supports wildlife (Nilgai)
Stops salinity
Useful for Animal Husbandry

Agriculture
4 km away from the coast
Mostly Dryland single-crop farming
Bajra, Jowar, Cotton, Guwar, Castor

Issues
–Salinity Ingress
–Affects productivity
–Windfarms / Industries
–Buying large areas of agricultural land
Windfarms
Nearly 500 windmills
2.5 Acre/windmill
10 year lease for Rs.10000 – Rs.50000
1.5 MW each
Captive industrial use

Industries
Located near National Highway,
Narmada pipeline

Top 3 industries
Metallurgical(43)
Machinery Manufacturing (39)
Chemicals(33)

No. of industries : 357

Total Investment : 11,221 Cr
Employment Generated : 84,369
Emerging Issues: Bhachau Gandhidham Coast

Wild Ass
Sanctuary

Kandla
Port/
SEZ
Zone 2 : Anjar - Mundra
 Mundra Landuse

Sr.No. Luse/cover Area in Ha. % to Total 6 Barrenland 2,586 8.05

1 Agri cropped area 2,588 8.06 7 Built-up area 2,634 8.20
2 Fallowlands 2,022 6.30 8 Mudflats 8,395 26.14
3 Mangrove 1,493 4.65 9 Salt pan 137 0.43
Mangrove 10 Waterbody 8,373 26.07
4 degraded 604 1.88 11 Turbid Waterbody 587 1.83
5 Prosopis 2,697 8.40 Total: 32,115 100.00
Traditional Fishing

Motorised boat
used to navigate
10 km in to the
sea Bander is strategically
important for fishing

Pagadiya
Fishing Nets in
the intertidal
zone
Fisherfolk stay in
Bander for 8-9
months in a year.

Though Fisherfolk have been using the Banders for over 200
years, their rights over the Bander are not recognized.
Traditional Fishing
Main fish is Bombay Duck
Sorted, cleaned and, dried on bamboo poles
Exported to Srilanka, Bangladesh.
No of Banders : 12
No of Households : 988
Annual production : 10,000 MT
Annual Revenue : 45 Cr

Issues

- Industries
- Displacement of fishing settlements
- Affect fish production by discharging
pollutants into the sea.
- Affect fish production by damaging
environment – Clearing Mangroves,
Blocking Creeks etc.
Animal Husbandry
Average 2000 cattle in Mundra coast villages.
Sources of fodder are gauchar (grazing land)
and agriculture waste.
2500 Ha of Gauchar land required as per
norms.

Issues

- Industries (Mundra Port/SEZ

- Gauchar land used for SEZ and 44% shortage
in Gauchar land currently as compared to 10%
ten years ago.
- Destruction of Mangroves has affected camel
population.
Salt pans Intake
Channel
Only Marine salt to draw
water
Process of solar evaporation Brine moves
from the
intertidal
through Pans area
Area under salt pans : 1720 Ha with increasing during
salinity high tide
No of laborers : 15,000
Annual salt production : 6 lakh MT
Final pan
Annual Revenue generated : 30 Cr where salt is
produced

Issues

- Industries
- Allocation of land earlier used for salt pans to
industries
- Salt production affected due to industrial
pollution
 Agriculture/ Horticulture
Mixed farming (Agriculture with horticulture
and animal husbandry)

Summer
Bajra, Goundnut (with Irrigation)
(Feb to May)
Kharif Cotton, Castor, Groundnut, Jowar, Bajra,
(June to Sept) Luceran(fodder), Pulses, Guwar
Rabi Wheat, Mustard, Isabgol, Jowar (with
(Oct to Jan) Irrigation), pulses

Mundra-Bhuj Horticulture Belt

Shift to Date palm due to Salinity Ingress
Tissue Culture / Offshoot Technology

Issues

- Industries
- Agriculture land used for industries
- Decreasing productivity due to salinity ingress
- Lack of Marketing Facilities
Industries
Almost entire stretch of coast used
for Port/SEZ
Nearly 25,000 MW coal based power
plants
Industries along the National
Highway

Top 3 type of Industries

Multipurpose Port / SEZ
Power Plants (5)
Metallurgical Industries (9)

Total Investment : 1,41,909 Cr

No. of Industries : 44
Employment Generated : 50915
Proposed Expansion of Mundra Port / SEZ
Port No of ships per Nature of cargo
year by 2013
West 850 Coal, Steel Scrap,
Chemicals, Dry Bulk
South 220 Dry Bulk and Oil
North 150 Automobiles
East 300 Steel Scrap, Dry Bulk
 WFDP project map superimposed on map of Access Roads, Settlements,
Intertidal Zone used by Traditional Fisherfolk in Mundra Coast

1,4,6,8,10,12,16,19,22,24 – Access Roads used by Traditional Fisherfolk. 2,5,7,9,11,15,18,21,23 - Settlements

(Banders) used by Traditional Fisherfolk. 3,13,17,20 – Creeks/ Intertidal Area used by Traditional Fisherfolk.
 Impact on Livelihoods – Animal
Husbandry
Gauchar Shortage in
Reqd Total Gauchar
land Required
Village Cattle Gauchar Gauchar Land allotted
Remaining Gauchar
Land(Ha) Land (Ha) to SEZ(Ha)
(Ha) Land %

Navinal 1753 280 137 94 43 85%

Tunda 1189 190.24 158 86 72 62%
Luni 833 133.28 81 81 0 100%
Siracha 3170 507.2 390 41 349 31%
Baroi 276 44.16 141 31 110
Goersama 957 153.12 86 29 57 63%
Zarapara 5509 881.44 1000 408 592 33%
Mundra 273 43.68 NA 496 NA
Original terrain of West Mundra Coast (in 2005)
 New construction in West Mundra Coast (as seen in Dec 2008).
EC was given in January 2009, In principle FC was given in February 2009
Original terrain of Central Mundra Coast (in 2005)
New construction in Central Mundra Coast (as seen in Dec 2008).
EC was given in January 2009, In principle FC was given in February 2009
Mangrove being destroyed in Mundra coast
Mangrove being destroyed in Mundra coast
Emerging Issues: Anjar – Mundra Coast

Wild Ass
Sanctuary

Kandla
Port/
SEZ
Zone 3 : Mandvi - Jakhau
Traditional Fishing
Fulltime
3 “ATMs” (Any Time Machimari Settlements)
Fulltime Pagadiya and Boat Fishing
Pomfrets, Seer Fish, Ribbon Fish etc

Part-time
Pagadiya Fishing + Farming + Animal Husbandry
Fishing in 100-150 m wide intertidal zone.
Travel up to 10 km away from village.
No of Villages : 12
No of Households (Full & Part combined) : 1340
Annual Production (Full & Part combined) : 48,300 MT
Annual Revenue (Full & Part combined) : 222 Cr

Issues
- Industries in the pipeline
- Inadequate Infrastructure in Fishing Settlement
- Low income from Pagadiya Fishing
Agriculture
Mixed Farming with Animal Husbandry
Cotton cultivation zone
Irrigated Farming (15 km from coast) and few
places where surface water is available
Dry land Farming (1.5 km – 15 km from the
coast)

Animal Husbandry
Significant Animal Husbandry in the region
Large tracts of cultivable wasteland and thin
forest cover useful for grazing
Fodder also purchased from Market
Windfarms
Windfarms on the entire 100 km Mandvi-
Jakhau beach front.
Land grab issues

Industries
No of
Scientists have identified this zone as most Investment No of persons
Industry (Cr) industries employed
suitable for industries
WINDFARMS 7500 1 800
Lot of Land purchased by agents ALUMINIUM
INDUSTRY 5876 2 1509
But, very few industries BENTONITE
BASED
INDUSTRY 13 1 40

Total 13,389 4 2,349

Emerging Issues: Mandvi – Jakhau Zone
Emerging Issues: Mandvi – Jakhau Zone
Zone 4 : Jakhau - Lakhpat
Full time Traditional
Fishing
•Only one Full time Fishing settlement
•Border Restrictions on Fishing
•Fishing in creeks off Lakhpat coast
•Fulltime Pagadiya fishing by women
•30 -40 Pagadiya women in the village
•Pomfrets, Seer Fish, Shark, Jew Fish etc

Issues
-Displacement in Gunau
-Border restrictions affect Boat
Fishing
Part-time Traditional
Fishing
•Pagadiya Fishing + Farming + Animal
Husbandry
•No issue due to Border Restrictions

No of households(combined) : 334
Annual Fish Production(combined) : 1949 MT
Annual Revenue(combined) : 26 Cr

Issues
- Decline in fish catch due to
industrial pollution
-Receding of tidal water due to
tapping of rivers upstream
Agriculture
•No salinity in land near coast
•Mainly Dryland Farming
•Dependence on rainfall
•Irrigation using surface water
Issues
•Industrial pollution affects
production

Animal Husbandry
•Significant Animal Husbandry in the area
•Grazing lands – Cultivable wastelands as
near as 1.5 km from coast
Handicrafts
•World Famous handicrafts
•Artisans - Women from Jat
community
•Exquisite bedding and pillows
•Primarily meant for exchange
within community
Industries
•Mining, Cement Industries
•Power plants, desalination plants on
the coast to support these industries

Top 3 type of industries

Cement (15)
Machinery Manufacturing (3)
Thermal Power Plants (2)

No of industries : 32
Investment : 21,689 Cr
Employment Generated : 19,531
Emerging Issues
Emerging Issues
In Solidarity with People on the
Kutch Coast