Lok Sabha Question No. 2594 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-09
Subject: Coastal Erosion in Andhra Pradesh
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Shri Appalanaidu Kalisetti

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2594

TO BE ANSWERED ON 09.03.2026

## Coastal Erosion in Andhra Pradesh

## 2594. SHRI APPALANAIDU KALISETTI:

Will the Minister of ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE be pleased to state:

- (a) the  total  length  of  coastline  in  the  country  affected  by  coastal  erosion,  State/UT-wise along with identification of district-wise erosion hotspots in Andhra Pradesh and the rate of annual land loss recorded during the last five years;
- (b)   the details of assessment studies or surveys conducted by the Government or scientific institutions to monitor coastal erosion and its impact on communities, infrastructure and coastal ecosystems;
- (c)   the  measures  undertaken  under  the  National  Coastal  Zone  Management  Plan  or  any other  programme  to  mitigate  coastal  erosion,  including  seawalls,  groynes,  mangrove afforestation and community-based interventions;
- (d)   the details of the funds allocated, released and utilised for coastal protection measures, State and year-wise including Andhra Pradesh;
- (e)   whether any early warning systems or monitoring stations have been installed to predict and respond to erosion events; and
- (f)   if so, the details thereof along with the future plans to strengthen coastal protection and resilience measures in Andhra Pradesh?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

(SHRI KIRTI VARDHAN SINGH)

(a) The National Centre for Coastal Research (NCCR), an attached office of the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), has been monitoring shoreline erosion along the Indian coast since 1990 using remote sensing data and GIS mapping techniques. Based on the results of the study, the Annexure provides detailed information on the total length of coastline in the country affected by coastal erosion, State/UT-wise along with identification of district-wise erosion hotspots in Andhra Pradesh and the rate of annual land loss recorded during the last five years.

(b)-(f)  The Government of India is committed to taking proactive steps in combating sea erosion and protection of India's coastal areas. Some of the important measures undertaken in this regard are as follows:

-  MoEFCC  has  issued  Coastal  Regulation  Zone  (CRZ)  Notifications  with  a  view  to conserve  and  protect  the  unique  environment  of  coastal  stretches  and  marine  areas,

besides livelihood security to the fisher communities and other local communities in the coastal  areas  and  to  promote  sustainable  development  based  on  scientific  principles taking into account the dangers of natural hazards, sea level rise due to global warming.

-  As per CRZ Notification, 2019, measures for control of erosion are permissible activity in CRZ areas. The Ministry has issued directions to Coastal States/UTs, for incorporation of  Shoreline  Management  Plan  in  CZMP.  NCSCM, an organization under Ministry of Environment  Forest  &  Climate  Change  (MoEFCC)  and  NCCR  is  providing  technical support to coastal States for implementation of coastal protection measures at vulnerable stretches and also involved in the preparation of Shoreline Management Plans.
-  MoEFCC has delineated the hazard line for the entire coast of the country. The hazard line is  used  by  agencies  in  Coastal  States  as  a  tool  for Disaster  Management including planning  of  adaptive  and  mitigation  measures.  The  hazard  line  features  in  the  Coastal Zone Management Plan (CZMP) of the coastal States/Union territories and approved by the MoEFCC.
-  Coastal Protection Projects are planned & executed by respective Maritime States/ UTs. Central Government's role is largely advisory, technical support and catalytic in nature. These  projects  are  generally  funded  by  States/  UTs  from  their  own  funds  or  from multilateral funding or through Central Assistance. In some cases, Government of India has facilitated multilateral funding to States/ UTs in tackling the coastal erosion. A Status Report on Coastal Area Management published in 2024 by Central Water Commission noted that the total expenditure incurred by various Maritime States/ UTs for protection of  coastal  erosion  in  the  last  10  years  is  ₹  2641.39  crore  and  the  total  cost  of  planned schemes as well as ongoing works for the next 5 years is ₹ 7218.63 crore.
-  Mangrove  and  shelterbelt  plantations  also  helps  in  control  of  coastal  erosion.  Union Budget  2023-24  announced  'Mangrove  Initiative  for  Shoreline  Habitats  &  Tangible Incomes (MISHTI)' to promote and conserve mangroves, which will also work as a bio shield. Under this program, an amount of ₹ 4.71 Crore has been released to the Andhra Pradesh  during  the  FY  2024-25  as  Gap-Funding  from  National  CAMPA  through MISHTI Scheme
-  The  15 th Finance  Commission  has  recommended  ₹  1000  crore  for  resettlement  of displaced  people  affected  by  erosion  for  2021-  26  under  National  Disaster  Response Fund  (NDRF).  In  addition,  ₹  1500  crore  is  earmarked  for  mitigation  measures  to prevent  river  and  coastal erosion for the same period under National Disaster Mitigation Fund (NDMF). For both funds (NDRF and NDMF), State Governments will have to avail resources on a cost-sharing basis. The proposal submitted by the Government of Andhra Pradesh for funding under National Disaster Mitigation Fund (NDMF) is as follows:
- o Detailed  Project  Report  (DPR)  with  an  amount  of  ₹  323.00  Crore  for developing  an  integrated  coastal  protection  strategy  from  Kakinada  City  to Uppada by summarizing and integrating the site-specific works like construction of groyne, sea wall, deflecting wall, Bio- shield etc.
- o DPR with an amount of ₹ 200.00 Crore for Control of coastal erosion through structural  and  non-structural  mitigation  measures,  restoration  of ecosystems,

and enhancement of community resilience in the Visakhapatnam Metropolitan Development Authority (VMRDA) region.

-  Coastal Management Information System (CMIS)" under Central Sector Scheme namely "Development  of  Water  Resources  Information  System"  of  Ministry  of  Jal  Shakti  has been developed considering the importance of data on coastal processes towards coastal protection  measures.  Coastal  data  collected  through  CMIS  can  be  used  in  planning, design,  construction  and  maintenance  of  site  specific  coastal  protection  structures  at vulnerable  Coastal  stretches.  Establishment  of  three  sites  under  CMIS  in  the  State  of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and UT of Puducherry has been completed.
-  In addition, Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), MoES has prepared the Coastal Vulnerability Index (CVI) maps for the entire coastline of India by using  seven  parameters  such  as  shoreline  change  rate,  sea-level  change  rate,  coastal elevation, coastal slope, coastal geomorphology, significant wave height and tidal range.
-  As informed by the Government of Andhra Pradesh, the State is planning to implement the 'Great Green Wall (GGW) of Andhra Pradesh,' envisaged as a 5-kilometre-wide and 1,053-kilometre-long  vegetative  barrier  along  its  coastline.  The  proposed  initiative  is intended  to  function  as  a  living  ecological  shield  to  mitigate  the  impacts  of  climate change, including cyclones, storm surges, tsunamis, sea-level rise, and  coastal erosion. The  project  is  proposed  to  be  implemented  under  the  direction  of  the  Department  of Environment, Forests, Science & Technology, with the broader objective of enhancing the State's green cover to 50% by the year 2047.

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The State-wise shoreline change (1990-2022) details are given below:

| Coastal States   | Shoreline Change Status (1990-2022) in %   | Shoreline Change Status (1990-2022) in %   | Shoreline Change Status (1990-2022) in %   |
|------------------|--------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------|
|                  | Erosion                                    | Stable                                     | Accretion                                  |
| Gujarat          | 31.2                                       | 46.1                                       | 22.7                                       |
| Daman & Diu      | 29.4                                       | 15.8                                       | 7.1                                        |
| Maharashtra      | 25.5                                       | 64.6                                       | 10.0                                       |
| Goa              | 15.3                                       | 75.0                                       | 9.7                                        |
| Karnataka        | 23.7                                       | 50.1                                       | 26.2                                       |
| Kerala           | 43.9                                       | 35.7                                       | 20.5                                       |
| Tamil Nadu       | 39.2                                       | 40.6                                       | 20.2                                       |
| Puducherry       | 47.3                                       | 44.4                                       | 8.3                                        |
| Andhra Pradesh   | 31.0                                       | 24.9                                       | 44.0                                       |
| Odisha           | 28.3                                       | 17.6                                       | 54.6                                       |
| West Bengal      | 60.5                                       | 14.3                                       | 25.2                                       |
| Total            | 34.2                                       | 39.5                                       | 26.3                                       |

The shoreline change study for Andhra Pradesh coast was carried for the past 32 years (19902022). The study shows that about 31% of the coast is eroding, 24.9% of the coast is stable and 44.0% of the coast is accreting nature. The details of estimated coastline changes along various coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh are given below:

| Coastal District   | Shoreline Change Status (1990-2022) in %   | Shoreline Change Status (1990-2022) in %   | Shoreline Change Status (1990-2022) in %   |
|--------------------|--------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------|
| Coastal District   | Erosion                                    | Stable                                     | Accretion                                  |
| Tirupati           | 22.0                                       | 24.5                                       | 53.5                                       |
| Nellore            | 33.3                                       | 39.5                                       | 27.3                                       |
| Prakasam           | 25.3                                       | 34.1                                       | 40.6                                       |
| Bapatla            | 20.0                                       | 5.3                                        | 74.7                                       |
| Krishna            | 43.8                                       | 9.3                                        | 46.9                                       |
| West Godavari      | 52.5                                       | 2.1                                        | 45.3                                       |
| Konaseema          | 31.1                                       | 7.3                                        | 61.6                                       |
| Kakinada           | 52.8                                       | 15.0                                       | 32.1                                       |
| Anakapalli         | 6.9                                        | 36.4                                       | 56.7                                       |
| Vishakhapatnam     | 25.9                                       | 51.3                                       | 22.8                                       |
| Vizhianagaram      | 3.1                                        | 42.9                                       | 54.0                                       |
| Srikakulam         | 31.6                                       | 35.3                                       | 33.1                                       |
| Total              | 31.0                                       | 24.9                                       | 44.0                                       |

Land loss and gain due to shoreline change were quantified in hectares (ha), by geo-processing between 1990 and 2018 with symmetric difference tools by NCCR.

| Coastal District   | Land loss (In ha) (Approx.)   | Land gain (In (Approx.)   | ha)   |
|--------------------|-------------------------------|---------------------------|-------|
| Nellore            | 266                           | 491                       |       |
| Prakasam           | 91                            |                           | 399   |
| Guntur             | 35                            |                           | 1348  |
| Krishna            | 1834                          |                           | 1322  |
| West Godavari      | 172                           |                           | 235   |
| East Godavari      | 2529                          |                           | 2456  |
| Vishakhapatnam     | 70                            | 224                       |       |
| Vizianagaram       | 39                            |                           | 41    |
| Srikakulam         |                               | 65                        | 487   |

The  details  of  most  eroding  coast  (hot  spots),  which  requires  priority  attention,  are  given below as per the shoreline change study by NCCR.

Region along Andhra Pradesh Coast

| Coastal District   | Location                        |
|--------------------|---------------------------------|
| Tirupati           | SHAR                            |
| Prakasam           | Binginapalli                    |
| Krishna            | Southern coast of Krishna delta |
| Krishna            | Krishna delta region            |
| Krishna            | Hamsaladeevi beach              |
| Krishna            | North of Hamsaladeevi beach     |
| Krishna            | Palathumbalapalayem             |
| West Godavari      | Pedamaina vanilanka beach       |
| Konaseema          | Odalarevu beach                 |
| Kakinada           | Bhairavapalem                   |
| Kakinada           | Coringa Mangroves               |
| Kakinada           | West of Hope Island             |
| Kakinada           | Uppada                          |
| Kakinada           | Nemam beach                     |
| Kakinada           | Ponnada                         |
| Kakinada           | Konapapapetta                   |
| Vishakhapatnam     | Pedanagamayyapalem              |

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