Named for the olive colour of its heart shaped shell, the Olive Ridley sea turtles have been declared endangered species since July 28. 1978 given the increasing rates of their deaths.

The coastline of Odisha has three famous destinations - the Devi river mouth, Gahirmatha in Bhitarkanika wildlife sanctuary and Rushikulya river mouth in Ganjam, where Olive Ridley Turtles visit in large numbers for nesting. Although these turtles have been visiting Odisha since long but their numbers have started dwindling in the recent years. 

As per an overall assessment, more than 120,000 dead turtles have been found on the coasts of Orissa over the last decade. Last year during January to March, more than 2000 turtles were washed ashore over a period of three months in the Devi river mouth area alone while thousands of dead turtles have been found in other places like Rusikulya Mouth and Gahirmatha turtle sanctuary. The current mortality rate is expected to be more than 25,000 turtles a year which is an alarming rate and much beyond the estimated rate of 15,000 a year. 

In 2017, over 3,85,000 turtles had reached the Rushikulya rookery coast to lay eggs. And this was the highest in 16 years ! 

Hence, in order to protect and preserve the endangered species of Olive Ridley Turtles, the Forest Department has erected temporary fences on a stretch of 4.5 km to prevent predators from damaging the nests and the eggs in them.

To monitor the endangered marine reptiles, the department has established five control rooms near the Rushikulya rookery. A data interpretation centre has also been started.