Mumbai, the capital of Maharashtra as well as the financial capital of India. It is one of the busiest cities in the country. When it comes to Mumbai, Marine Drive is the first place to visit. During monsoon, the city looks gorgeous with the scenic beauty of the Marine Drive. If you have been at that place, you will notice a four-legged concrete structure all along the sea shore.
Why are they shaped liked the way they are? :
So have you ever wondered what are these structures and why are they shaped in that way? Here is the answer..
- Those four-legged concrete structures are known as tetrapods.
- They were first developed in 1950 by France Laboratoire Dauphinois d’Hydraulique (now ARTELIA).
- They were imported to the city from Australia in 1958. There are approximately 6,500 tetrapods present at the Marine Drive each weighing about 2 tons.
- Tetrapods are used as protection units in case of high energy waves that hit the sea shore.
- They are placed in interlocking pattern and allows the incoming water waves to pass through them rather than against it thereby reducing the displacement and energy of the waves.
Tetrapods and concrete have become a Japanese institution in modern times. Their manufacture and dispersal create jobs for Japanese citizens and contracts for construction companies. It is estimated that nearly 50 percent of Japan’s 35,000 kilometer coastline has been covered or somehow altered by Tetrapods and other forms of concrete. Because of the proliferation of Tetrapods, tourists to the Hawaii-like island of Okinawa often find it difficult to find pristine beaches and unaltered shoreline, especially in the southern half of the island.
These tetrapods are seen not in only India but in different parts of the world like – the North Sea in Germany, on the shore of Suruga Bay surrounded by Mount Fuji etc.
Why The Rocks Alongside Marine Drive Are Shaped Like That? Here is the answer!
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