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  Metros   Mumbai  21 Sep 2019  1L ha forest cover to be notified ‘reserved’

1L ha forest cover to be notified ‘reserved’

THE ASIAN AGE. | SONALI TELANG
Published : Sep 21, 2019, 3:19 am IST
Updated : Sep 21, 2019, 3:19 am IST

This will also boost both forest and mangrove cover.

The state forest department has asked all Maharashtra circles to notify “protected” forest of at least 300,166 hectares by 2020.
 The state forest department has asked all Maharashtra circles to notify “protected” forest of at least 300,166 hectares by 2020.

Mumbai: The Thane forest division has been asked to notify an additional one lakh hectare of forest as “reserved”, according to a senior official from the state forest department. He added that the process will ensure that more forest area is protected against encroachment by builders and slum dwellers. This will also boost both forest and mangrove cover.

The state forest department has asked all Maharashtra circles to notify “protected” forest of at least 300,166 hectares by 2020. The Thane circle has the highest target of 104,327 hectares; followed by Nagpur (70,629 ha); and Kolhapur (61,097 ha).

“Encroachment by both slum dwellers and builders has posed a challenge for the forest department. Mumbai and Thane districts have recorded the highest number of encro-achment cases in the last few years. As such, we have to update the forest cover under rese-rved and protected category,” said the official.

“Even though we have carried out demolition drives along forest stretches, they keep coming back. The situation is also worse for mangroves,” the
official added.   

Tags: thane forest division