From brackish lagoons, estuaries, coastal marshes and mudflats to mangrove forests, India's 7,500 kms coastline is home to diverse marine habitats, all of which are under direct threat from urbanisation, unchecked construction and climate change. However, there are organisations that aim to prevent coastal habitat degradation and protect India's coastal diversity as well as its dependent population.
Reef Watch Marine Conservation
Reef Watch Marine Conservation is a Not For Profit organisation whose efforts are targeted towards protecting and nurturing the diversity of life in India’s coastal and marine environments. With bases in Maharashtra, Karnataka and the Andaman & Nicobar Islands, it was founded in 1993 by Prahlad and Mitali Kakkar and its work today is spearheaded by Nayantara Jain.
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Reef Watch aims to adapt internationally established ecosystem restoration techniques to the Indian context by piloting them on our coast and provide consultancy to other agencies wishing to implement the same. They also provide veterinary care to injured, endangered marine animals and train first responders and vets along the coastline. They are also focussed on empowering coastal youth with knowledge, skill development, training and avenues for change towards a better planet.
Terra Conscious
Founded in 2017 by Puja Mitra, Terra Conscious aims to promote responsible tourism and marine conservation in Goa. Mitra, who previously worked as a senior programme coordinator for World Wildlife Fund (WWF) India runs the organisation with her husband Roshan Gonsalves.
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Headquartered in North Goa, they offer, in partnership with local operators, an example of how a responsible marine wildlife watching experience could be conducted, keeping with internationally accepted guidelines. This is enabled through their Boat Operator Partnership Programme for ethical dolphin watching. They also have a vision to create awareness-building capacity for a number of stakeholders to enable them to effectively address marine and coastal conservation challenges.
Coastal Impact
Coastal Impact is an NGO based out of Goa, which aims to study & monitor India’s marine ecosystems, support awareness, outreach, research and conservation actions and also help build interest and engagement amongst local communities and visitors about the extraordinary oceanic ecosystems of India. Currently their Marine Monitors project takes the aid of certified scuba divers to monitor the state of oceans off Goa’s Dabolim Airport.
Society for Marine Research and Conservation
The Society for Marine Research and Conservation (SMRC), headquartered in Cochin aims to contribute further to the better understanding of the marine ecosystems of India, its flora and fauna through dedicated field research which provides necessary scientific ideas which are critical for the better protection and conservation of the marine natural resources and sustainable development. They have many ongoing projects that hope to help citizens learn more about our country’s marine diversity, such as Migratory Shore Birds Monitoring Programme and Traditional Knowledge Of Indian Fishermen And Their Promotions.
