Green Mahanadi mission gets cabinet nod

Cabinet of Ministers in Odisha approved the Green Mahanadi Mission which had been launched by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik with much fanfare in July 2018.The movement had started with planting of saplings at two locations in Subarnapur and Boudh districts. The plantation drive started with a goal to  give a green cover to as many as 1303 villages spread over 15 districts situated on both sides of the Mahanadi by planting two crore saplings. The goal for the year 2018-19 is to plant saplings on the river banks of Mahanadi, Tel and Ib whereas for the subsequent year(2019-20)the  government plans to similarly cover the banks of river Baitarani, Brahmani and Rushikulya with trees.

This mission will be carried forward for 5 years, that is, till the year financial year 2022-23.

Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi issued a statement on behalf the government in this regard. He said that 41300 hectares of land will be covered in this mission and 1041 km of river bank will be re-forested. More than 5 core saplings will be planted. The mission cost has been estimated at 448 core rupees.