Bhubaneswar: For the first time, armed men will patrol the Chilika lake to ensure safety of Irrawaddy dolphin (Orcaella brevirostris), a schedule-I animal under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972.

The Chilika Development Authority has decided to hire five retired army employees for patrolling, which will start fromNovember last week.

Additional chief executive of development authority, Sasmita Lenka, said a 15-member patrolling team, including the five armed men will ensure safety guidelines for boat operators and tourists while watching the dolphins. "As the tourist inflow remains at peak during winter the patrolling team will ensure minimal disturbance to the mammals," Lenka said.

According to the guidelines, the boatmen need to reduce the speed to decrease the noise-level and avoid possible chance of collision. Besides the boatmen should not chase the dolphins and turn of their engines when the animals approach closer to the boat.

Tourists should not feed the dolphins as it may cause infection and also alter their natural feeding behaviour. They should not dump waste in the lake.

"Penalty for violation is imprisonment for a term not less than three years with a fine which shall not be less than Rs 10,000," Lenka said.

According to official statistics, 89 Irrawaddy dolphins were in the lake in 2003, which gradually increased to 134 in 2017. These dolphins are also a vulnerable species under International Union for Conservation of Nature red list of threatened animals

The development authority had sought financial assistance of Rs 15 crore for protection and conservation of dolphins from a period of five years between 2017 and 2022. According to the proposal submitted by the development authority, the organisation has proposed to set up two rescue and rehabilitation centres for dolphins in the lake. The rehabilitation centre will have a treatment room and water body enclosures for the rescued dolphins.