Tamil Nadu has added 24 reserve forests covering an area of 3585.3 hectares in the last two years, as per the Forest Department.
Under the Green Tamil Nadu Mission, which aims to increase tree and forest cover from 23.69 percent to 33 percent, the State has notified reserve forests in eight districts Dindigul, Dharmapuri, Madurai, Namkkal, Nilgris, Kallakurichi, Sivaganga, and Theni in 2021-2023 under Section 16 of the Tamil Nadu Forest Act, said Supriya Sahu, Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Environment, Climate Change, and Forests.
The State has also established over 240 nurseries to nurture seedlings. In addition, the mission helps create thousands of green jobs by providing employment especially to rural women, Ms. Sahu said.
Increasing protected forest area is a welcome move, said Balaji Srinivasagopalan, a retired forest officer, adding that the focus can also be on agroforestry wherein tree plantation can be done on private cultivable land. “Urban reserve forests have to be improved as there are a lot of developmental activities taking place. As urban areas expand, there will be water issues. Forests can augment groundwater supply,” he said.
