Udupi, Feb 7 (UNI) Karnataka government will work for preserving and growing mangroves with the participation of both public and private agencies, Principal Secretary to Department of Forest and Environment Abhijit Das Gupta said.

Speaking to newspersons at Jalady near here after viewing the mangroves grown by the Kundapura Forest Division yesterday, he said the Centre had sanctioned Rs one crore for the development of mangroves in the four forest divisions in the state Mangalore, Kundapura, Honnavar and Karwar.

He said the state government had also sent a proposal to the Centre to provide incentives to promote and encourage private parties, who take up growing of mangroves in their land.

Additional Chief Conservator of Forest M H A Sheik said as the Karwar division had saturated, the department was now aiming at taking intensive development of mangrove in the remaining three divisions.

The mangroves are natural bio-fencing against erosion, he added.

He said of the total 8.7 sq km of mangroves in the state, 2.5 sq km had been developed in coastal region. In the 300 hectares of mangroves in the Kundapura division, there were 14 species of plants.

UNI MA MSP SBA AS0417