By Nageshwar Patnaik in Bhubaneswar, November 5, 2016 : Odisha may get second world heritage site after famous Sun Temple at Konark with Bhitarkanika National Park [BNP] being short listed from among nine natural sites by the UNESCO.

Often described as paradise on earth, BCA presents a variety of habitats, microhabitat and climatic conditions which is found nowhere in the country and hence deserves a place in World Heritage Site. The UNESCO has put the BCA in its tentative list till the final list is announced.

In order to be a UNESCO World Heritage site, a place or structure must have great cultural, historical, and/or natural significance

A two-member technical evaluation team of International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) appointed by the UNESCO on Friday visited the Bhitarkanika National Park here to assess the ecosite from various aspects.

The team will evaluate the protection and conservation of the flora and fauna besides interacting with the local populace during their four-day visit. The eco-system, bio-diversity, local human habitation and socio-economic condition of locals and their dependence on the forest produce will be assessed by us, the IUCN members said.

Odisha government has presented graphic details of the National Park. We will visit the core area of the park and the water bodies besides the Gahirmatha marine sanctuary and Wheeler’s Island.

The rivers of Brahmani, Baitarni and Mahanadi deltaic region of Kendrapara district in northeastern part of the coastal Orissa make up the Bhitarkanika Conservation Area. A mangrove wetland ecosystem having high genetic and ecological diversity, Bhitarkanika covers a total area of 2154.26 square kilometer [sq km] of which Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary and National Park [BWSNP] covers 672 sq km, the Gahirmatha (Marine) Wildlife Sanctuary covers 1435 sq km, while the buffer zone in the Mahanadi delta covers 47.26 sq km.

“The salt water crocodile population has increased rapidly here. In 1975, the population was between 90 and 95, now it has reached 1671. The bird population is unique to this place as around 7-8 varieties of birds arrive here for mass nesting,” Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (wildlife) Sidhanta Das said.

Last year, the state government had submitted a comprehensive bio-diversity dossier to the UNESCO recommending it to be declared a World Heritage Site.

Bhitarkanika mangrove forests perform important ecosystem function by breaking tidal surges and devastating cyclones. By doing this they restrict and slow down erosion of tidal banks, stabilize silt deposits near the river mouth and also protect the lives of millions of coastal inhabitants by decelerating strong wave and tidal action.

It is the nursery and spawning ground for innumerable fish, prawn, crabs and other invertebrates including the endangered King Crab. It is one of the best reptile refuges in India as well as in the entire Southeast Asian region. Bhitarkanika also has a high density of the world’s largest water monitor lizard. It is home to the largest population of the endangered estuarine crocodile in the Indian sub-continent. Bhitarkanika contains one of the world’s largest nesting and breeding grounds of the endangered Olive Ridley Turtle.

The Gahirmatha beach, on the eastern boundary of Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary, supports the largest known nesting beach of the endangered Olive Ridley Sea Turtle in the world. Mating pairs congregate in large numbers in the coastal waters off the shore of Gahirmatha and nearly half million turtles nest on the beaches.

Of the 263 bird species recorded from the Bhitarkanika heronry, 17 belong to various categories of globally threatened bird species based on the IUCN Red Data List and Birdlife International. More than 25,000 birds consisting of eleven species nest in the heronry in less than 5 ha area. BCA one of the oldest and largest mixed species heronry in the country, a top forest official said.

India now has 35 sites, including 27 cultural properties, seven natural sites and one mixed site, notified as World Heritage Sites. Earlier in 1984, UNESCO had declared the Sun Temple at Konark as the first World Heritage Site in Odisha.