Paradip, Feb. 24: The golden beach in the heart of the town wears a ravaged look, thanks to the weeklong beach festival.

Though the week-long festival was held by a private organisation that ended four days ago, heaps of biodegradable waste generated from the fair has made the beach look ugly.

The civic authorities have decided to initiate legal action against the organisers for not clearing the beach. But, it is the tourists, who are in most distress since taking a stroll on the beach has become a messy affair.

The civic authorities have remained a silent spectator despite the pathetic state of the beach, which attracts thousands of tourists on any given day.

Executive officer of the Paradip Municipality Sharada Prasad Panda said: "The beach festival came to an end on last Friday. We had asked the organisers to clean the beach right after the conclusion of the event. However, they defied our directives. They also did not pay the municipality Rs 8,500 for organising the week-long festival on the beach."

"The municipality has decided to initiate legal action against the organisers for perpetrating the nuisance. The civic body is going to take up the clean-up drive from tomorrow. We will clean the beach within the next couple of days," Panda said.

Local residents are of the view that there is nothing wrong in organising beach fairs, but it should be cleaned up within a short notice. The beach has turned ugly and awful with stench emanating from the garbage-filled stretch.

"The serene beach is littered with heaps of filth, garbage and mounds of polythene. The civic authorities have blissfully forgotten to undertake the clean-up drive," said local resident Binoy Roy.

"The golden beach holds the key to tourism in this port town. The garbage-filled beach would dissuade the visitors to come to Paradip. Those who solely rely on beach tourism are being hit hard," said Manoj Pattnaik, another local resident.

"At several beaches across the country, prohibition has been enforced on the use of polythene and disposable plastic cups, sachets and bags. Such moves help in keeping the beauty of the beaches intact and makes them tourist-friendly. But, it a matter of deep regret that officials here have scant regard towards such environment safety measures," said environment activist Biswajit Mohanty.