Forest Dept. launches mega drive to plant palmyrah seeds in coastal Mayiladuthurai district to provide bio-shield during calamity

The Forest Department has launched a mega drive to plant 30,000 palmyrah seeds in reserve forests close to the coastline in Mayiladuthurai district and on river bunds during the current fiscal to act as bio-shield during natural calamities and prevent soil erosion. 

The project is being carried out under the Green Tamil Nadu Mission which aims to increase the State’s tree and forest cover. The drive to plant palmyrah seeds began recently in the coastal Mayiladuthurai district which consists of Sirkazhi and Mayiladuthurai forest ranges.

The target set for planting palmyrah seeds for the Sirkazhi and Mayiladuthurai forest range is 15,000 each.  Apart from utilising its field-level personnel in planting palmyrah seeds, the department is involving college students and volunteers in this mega exercise. 

Palmyrah seeds have been planted at Koozhaiyar Reserve Forest close to the coastline and in Poompuhar coastal area besides on the Uppanar river bund. The planting of seeds was being done in close proximity to each other.  Plans were afoot to carry out planting in the reserve forests at Pazhaiyar, Pudupattinam, and Alakudi along the coastline besides at Tharangambadi and on revenue poromboke land wherever required.

About 5,000 seeds have been planted in the identified locations till now in the Sirkazhi forest range limits and the plan was to complete the task by the end of this month, said a department official. The main objective behind this drive was that Palmyrah trees would act as a bio-shield in the coastline during natural calamities and prevent soil erosion in other areas, the official said. 

This is the third consecutive year that the department is carrying out the mega drive in Mayiladuthurai district. In 2025-26 financial year, the department had planted 45,000 palmyrah seeds at chosen locations in the district and 85,000 seeds during the 2024-25 fiscal.