The Marina Beach

The Marina Beach is a beach situated along a 12 km seashore in the city of Chennai, India along the Bay of Bengal, part of the Indian Ocean. Unlike the short, rocky formations that make up the Juhu Beach in Mumbai on the west coast of India, the Marina is primarily grimy.

Although many locals claim the Marina to be the world's longest beach, there exist in fact several longer beaches, including Praia do Cassino in Brazil (which is actually the longest beach in the world stretching up to 240 km), Cox's Bazar in Bangladesh, Padre Island on the US bay Coast, Ninety Mile Beach in Australia and Ninety Mile Beach, New Zealand. A similar beach exists in Dubai, UAE. However, unlike the other beaches, it is an urban beach similar to the Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro. The width of the beach at the most widest extend is 437 meters long.

The beach begins near Fort St. George in the north to Besant Nagar in the south, a distance of about 12km. A famous characteristic of the beach is the set of stone statues that adorn the wayside area of the beach. Most statues are of Indian/local legends like Mahatma Gandhi, Kannagi, Thiruvalluvar, while others have symbolic consequence like the Statue of Labour. Also memorials for M. G. Ramachandran and C. N. Annadurai, former Chief ministers of Tamil Nadu are present on the beach. Recently, a statue of actor Sivaji Ganesan was installed.

The Marina used to be famed for its pristine beauty, jolly environment, and rich ecosystems. However, since the middle of the 20th century, the beach and water has become polluted. A production of plastic bags, human waste and other pollutants have rendered many parts of the beach unusable. In recent years, many voluntary organizations have taken up the task of cleaning up the Marina and protecting the ecosystem. Particular efforts include protection of Olive Ridley turtle nests along the Neelangarai section of the beach. Despite these problems however, a visit to the Marina is a sine qua non for any tourist coming to Chennai.