With the support of Kedah Tourism and MOTAC Kedah, the Bumiputera e-Commerce traders Association (BETA) organized the Gamat Hunt program at Merdeka Beach today.

The event attracted 200 participants from the general public to raise awareness of the importance of conserving the sea cucumbers and promoting the coastal area as the ecotourist destination of Kedah.

" This event will give public awareness on the value of existing sea cucumbers and also promote Tennis Ball species sea cucumber on the mainland, "said Nor Azlan Fitri, Tourism Kedah Product and Policy Manager.

Earlier, a syndicate believed to be local locals has been reported to have been actively stealing two types of Tennis Ball Sea Cucumber species, at Merdeka Beach, Kuala Muda in Sungai Petani over the past month.

Mohd Khairul Anwar Mohd Badroldin, Chairman, Bumiputera E-Commerce Association (Beta), said: "In this event, we had a demonstration how to extract water from the sea cucumber and to let it go in again because this would make it clear to people that sea cucumbers will be able to regrow their organs in a few weeks time".

The hunt for sea cucumbers began at 7 a.m. as sea cucumbers are only found in low tides. The event also received support from Sungai Petani Municipal Council, Civil Defense Force of Malaysia and 3 other NGOs.