EXPERTS from the National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) in Kochi have set up equipment off Kodiakarai coast to carry out environ- mental impact assessment (EIA) for a new alignment of the Sethusamudram Ship- ping Canal project. In July 2008, following a Supreme Court directive Centre had appointed a pan- el headed by Dr R K Pachau- ri, chairman of the United Nation's climate change to examine the feasibility of an alternative alignment for Sethusamudram project. T h e p a n e l h e a d e d by Pachauri had nominated the NIO, the Goa-based Constit- uent Laboratory of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research to carry out EIA for the new alignment in Gulf of Mannar Palk Bay, Adam's Bridge, Kodiakarai and other areas. A team of experts from NIO arrived at Kodiakarai last Friday. They erected equipment about 10-kms off Kodiakarai coast. The equipment will l carry out extensive environ- mental data collection for 12 months. i NIO experts will make - monthly visits and analyse t the data, a member of the NIO team said. - The equipment erected in sea will be guarded by a team of five fisher men e round-the-clock using a pa- - trol boat. Fishing in sea in - the vicinity of the equip- ment has been banned till the end of EIA Fisheries De- partment, sources said. r Nio has tied up with two other institutions for EIA. The National Environmen- tal Engineering Institute, - Nagpur, another CSIR Labo- l ratory will conduct the envi- l ronmental impact assess- ment over land through which the proposed channel , passes. Indian Institute of i Management, Bangalore, will carry out cost-benefit analysis in connection with i the project.