A True Story of Sea TurtlesClass 9 English Chapter 2 Notes – Maharashtra Board

Summary: A True Story of Sea Turtles

While surveying white-bellied sea-eagles on the Konkan coast, the team found shallow pits with turtle egg shells. They had never seen turtle eggs there before. The beach had been closed to the public for about a month after silver smugglers were caught, so the eggs had survived.

They learnt a shocking truth: in every village a few people searched the beach at dawn, followed the female turtle's wheel-like trail to her nest, stole all 100–150 eggs and even killed the mother after she laid them — though sea turtles are protected in India as strongly as tigers.

The team studied turtles and, with the Forest Department, started a Turtle Protection Campaign at Velas (Ratnagiri district). Local people moved eggs to fenced nests and guarded them; 50 nests were saved in the first year, and the whole village cheered as the hatchlings ran to the sea.

The project spread along the whole Maharashtra coast to eighty villages. Former egg thieves were trained as protectors, 'Turtle Friend' (Kasav Mitra) awards were given, and a booklet and short film spread the message.

In 2006 the Turtle Festival (Kasav Mahotsava) began, with tourists staying in villagers' homes. Tourism brought income, so villagers now protect turtles to earn a living — 'Conservation of Nature through Livelihood'. The project is now run by the villagers, Gram Panchayat and Forest Department.

Key points to remember

• Writer: Bhau Katdare of Sahyadri Nisarg Mitra
• Place: Velas, Taluka Mandangad, District Ratnagiri, Konkan coast of Maharashtra
• Sea turtles are protected under Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 — the same protection as tigers
• A female turtle lays about 100–150 eggs in a nest about half a metre deep
• There are seven types of sea turtles in the world; five are found in India
• Olive Ridley turtles nest along the whole Maharashtra coast; Green turtles and Hawksbills have also been found
• A female returns, after about 15 years, to lay eggs where she was born; eggs hatch in 45–50 days using natural heat
• Only one or two hatchlings out of a thousand survive; turtles keep the sea clean
• In five years the whole coast was surveyed and 80 villages protected nests
• Turtle Festival from 2006; homestay families rose to 35; about 800 visitors in the season; 10% of homestay income goes to the Turtle Protection Fund

A True Story of Sea Turtles – Notes

1. The discovery and the problem

• The team was studying sea-eagles when a volunteer noticed egg shells near shallow pits. Villagers said they were turtle eggs.
• The eggs had hatched only because the beach had been sealed after smugglers of silver bricks were caught there — so no egg hunters could come.
• This showed that turtles do nest along the coast, but their eggs are normally stolen before they hatch.
• Egg hunters follow the trail the turtle leaves, dig up the nest and eat or sell the eggs. The mother is often killed and eaten after laying.
• Because the law protects turtles, this was done secretly.

2. How the turtles were protected

• Step 1: The team studied turtles and contacted turtle-protection institutes in India.
• Step 2: With the Forest Department they launched a campaign at Velas.
• Step 3: Local people searched for nests in the early morning (fresh trails are visible and thieves come at that time).
• Step 4: Eggs were carefully moved to a similar pit protected by wire fencing, and the nest was guarded until hatching.
• Result: 50 nests were saved in the first year. Even elderly villagers who had stolen eggs since school days saw hatchlings for the first time — showing how few eggs had ever been allowed to hatch.

3. Turtle facts

• Seven kinds of sea turtles in the world, five in India.
• Olive Ridleys nest all along Maharashtra's coast; Green turtles and Hawksbills are also seen.
• A female matures in about 15 years and comes back to the beach of her birth to nest.
• She digs a nest, lays eggs, covers them and goes back to the sea; she never returns to the nest.
• Eggs hatch in 45–50 days by the sun's natural heat. Hatchlings face countless dangers alone; only 1–2 in a thousand survive.
• Turtles keep the sea clean and have an important place in marine ecology, so large-scale protection is vital.

4. Conservation through livelihood

• Former egg thieves were trained as protectors: they knew the beach and nests best, and they gained honest work and pride instead of stealing.
• Kasav Mitra (Turtle Friend) awards, a booklet and a short film spread awareness.
• The Turtle Festival lets tourists watch hatchlings run to the sea, with a strict rule that tourism must never harm them.
• Homestay families host tourists at one fixed rate and give ten percent of their income to the Turtle Protection Fund. A Turtle Friends Club was formed in each village.
• The website and internet made the festival known worldwide. Because turtles bring tourists and money, villagers now want to protect them.
• Finally the project was handed to the Forest Department, the Gram Panchayat, the villagers and their club, because local people can protect local species best and that makes the project sustainable.

5. Grammar: clauses

• A clause is a group of words with a subject and a verb.
• A main (principal) clause makes complete sense on its own.
• A subordinate clause depends on the main clause; it often starts with who, which, when, because, if, etc.
• In a sentence starting with 'When…', the main clause usually comes after the comma.

Words and phrases to know

Key terms

A True Story of Sea Turtles – Flashcards

Read the question, answer it in your head, then tap the card to check. 20 cards.

A True Story of Sea Turtles – MCQ Quiz

15 questions. Tap an option — you will see at once if it is right and why.

How to study A True Story of Sea Turtles

⏱ About 30 minutes

1. Read (12 min)
   Read the account and note the sequence: discovery → shocking truth → study → Velas campaign → 80 villages → Turtle Festival → handover to villagers.
2. Learn (10 min)
   Learn the turtle facts and figures (100–150 eggs, 15 years, 45–50 days, 1–2 in 1000, 80 villages, 2006, 10%) and the idea of conservation through livelihood.
3. Practise (8 min)
   Answer the 'Try it yourself' questions, take the quiz and play 🎮 Play.