Vineeta Hoon, our field representative in India, reports that our nonprofit partner, LMRCC, wanted to see how the education centre building fared during the monsoon before setting up the interior. During the monsoon, they noted that damp sea air came in through ventilation ducts, and the interiors became damp with salt deposits. They have closed the ducts.

The centre is functional; a library has been set up, and wall displays are in place. LMRCC staff plans to build a platform around the building and a staircase up to the roof terrace. LMRCC has conducted a program for local high schoolers about the importance of coral reefs, installed a marine life wall painting at the Government Girls High School, established a reef club, and created a living reef exhibition.

Construction of the conservation education centre is complete, and electricity has been connected, according to field representative Vineeta Hoon. Furniture has been purchased, and the library is being finished. In the first week of April, a presentation, including a video on coral reef conservation, was organized for young visitors from mainland India, followed by a beach cleanup the next day.

Field representative Samit Sawhny reports that construction is going on at a rapid pace, and the building will likely be completed by the time a Seacology expedition visits in January. Construction of the building wall will be finished by 5th December 2009. The local electricity office is reviewing the centre’s application for an electric connection. A contract has been made with a local group for wiring the building before plastering and is expected to be completed by 15 December. The windows and doors for the building have been ordered and are being built. Conservation awareness programs are being shown twice a week at a local café, and beach clean-ups on uninhabited Pitti Island are held at regular intervals.