Maharashtra: 30-foot-long whale carcass washes ashore in Virar

Pic/Hanif Patel

A 30-ft long whale carcass, weighing in tonnes, washed ashore near Arnala Fort in Virar West on Monday. The concerned authorities have been informed but the government machinery is struggling to reach there with a machine to dispose of the marine giant.

The carcass is found near Channel Gate, north of the Fort, which is nearly 700-M away from Arnala Killa village in Virar. "The dead whale got washed ashore after it was tossed in the high tide on Monday. Now it's stuck at a place where the authorities concerned will have a tough time getting a machine to transport the bulky carcass to a place to dispose of it," said a local source.

Local fishermen suspect that the fully aquatic open-ocean endangered mammal might have got injured by a multi-deck cruise in the deep sea or have died of sea pollution. "The death cause of this marine giant can be ascertained only after medical examination. But it has been lying unattended since Monday and the local residents of Virar and nearby villages are walking to see the large carcass of the whale," said a source from Maharashtra Maritime Board (MMB) in Vasai Taluka.

"The concerned authorities including the forest and revenue officials have been informed. The local residents, who seem to be eager to take selfies with the carcass, have been suggested not to reach closer to the dead whale as the chances for its explosion can't be ruled out," said a local source.

A forest official said, "We have been informed about the whale carcass found near Arnala Fort. It's around 30-ft long, so we will have to take the help of large boats to pull it to a place where we can easily dispose of the marine giant's carcass."

In September 2021, a large carcass of a whale was found near Bhuigaon beach in Vasai and the authorities had to use two excavators to dig the seabed to dispose of the bulky carcass of the marine mammal.