The State of Odisha has added highest number of mangrove forests in the country and third highest in total increase of forest cover between 2019 and 2021, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik informed on Thursday.
Inaugurating a conference of Divisional Forest officers, Patnaik quoted the performance of the State in last two years in India State of Forests Report- 2021 and said the feat has been possible due to constant support of people, the VSS members and tireless effort of forest staff in the field.
The CM called upon the officials to work towards continuing the hard work that has resulted in the achievement in spite of the difficult situation due to the pandemic.
Patnaik advised the officials to rope in Women Self Help Groups for raising seedlings for the Forest Department as afforestation is a key component for providing employment to people in forest fringe villages.
Speaking on various issues such as rising conflicts between humans and elephants, trafficking of wildlife, and the incidents of forest fires, the Chief Minister said that these are key concerns where the government needs to prepare an integrated plan with a focused approach for significant mitigation.