About Kariyachalli Island:
- It is located in the Gulf Of Mannar region which is one of India’s most ecologically sensitive marine zones.
- Kariyachalli is one of the 21 islands in the Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park region, located on the southeastern coast of India between Rameshwaram and Thhothukudi. The gulf is home to one of the four major coral reefs in India.
- Kariyachalli island possess beaches, sand dunes, spit and sandy plains.
- The uninhabited island has sunk significantly over the past few decades due to rapid erosion, rising sea levels and degradation of the surrounding coral reef and seagrass meadows.
- According to a report by the Indian Institute of Technology Madras’s (IIT Madras), the Department of Ocean Engineering island’s landmass shrank by over 70 per cent in 2024 compared to 1969.
- About a third of the coral around the island has bleached on average and further degradation and disappearance of coral reefs would make the island more vulnerable to erosion, the report stated.
- At the current rate of erosion, the island is expected to be submerged by 2036. With just a decade left, government authorities are now racing to save it from disappearing.
- The Tamil Nadu Sustainably Harnessing Ocean Resources (TNSHORE) project, expected to start in August 2025, will try to restore the reefs with artificial modules, planting seagrass beds and reviving marine life.
