Under the MISHTI scheme, Gujarat has led the nation by planting mangroves across approximately 19,020 hectares 

The MISHTI scheme is a government-led initiative to increase the mangrove cover along the coastline and on saltpan lands. MISHTI stands for The Mangrove Initiative for Shoreline Habitats & Tangible Incomes. The scheme primarily focuses on the Sundarbans delta, Hoogly Estuary in West Bengal, India, and other bay parts of the country. It also includes other wetlands in the country. The objective of the scheme is to conserve and restore the mangrove ecosystem. Mangroves are  critical to mitigating the effects of climate change, preventing coastal erosion, and sustaining local livelihoods.

Under the scheme, the government is providing financial assistance to local communities to undertake mangrove plantation activities. The plantation activities are carried out in a participatory manner, involving local communities and NGOs, to ensure sustainability and community ownership of the initiative.

It also involves awareness campaigns to educate people about the importance of mangroves and their role in protecting the environment.

80% of the project cost is borne by the Government of India, while the remaining 20% is contributed by the respective State Governments.

LEARNING WITH TIMES/WITHOUT CLASSES: BASICS

One of the impact of depleting mangrove forest will be on global warming. Mangroves represent less than 1 percent of forests in the world, but they have a huge impact on the climate. They are the most carbon rich forests in the tropics with high carbon-capturing potential. Hence, their degradation and loss substantially reduce our ability to diminish and adapt to predicted changes in climatic conditions.

ABOUT SUNDERBANS

The Sunderbans is the largest block of continuous mangrove forests in the world. It is inhabited by at least 500 different species of fishes, mammals, birds, and reptiles. It is also home to mega predator the Royal Bengal Tiger, whose presence in the world is already threatened. The Sundarbans is also a World Heritage Site.

A mangrove is a shrub or salt-tolerant small tree that grows in coastal saline or brackish water. The term also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves occur worldwide in the tropics and subtropics. They adapted to the low oxygen (anoxic) conditions of waterlogged mud.

The mangrove forest is predominantly a salt-tolerant forest ecosystem except an estimated 856.7 million Sundari (Heritiera fomes) trees, which are less salt-tolerant. , a critical minimal inflow of freshwater is necessary for the luxuriant growth of mangroves.

Apart from being home to many animals,Terrestrial forms like the Royal Bengal Tiger, the Sundarbans acts as a natural border or wall for India and Bangladesh against huge tidal waves, sea cyclones, and tsunamis. Their roots also play an important role in trapping sediments and stabilizing shorelines facing increased erosion pressures. The vanishing coastline could therefore bring catastrophic changes, taking with itself entire villages and towns.

It estimated that 1,500 species of plants and animals, including fish and birds, depend on mangroves, as the shallow waters beneath mangrove trees serve as breeding nurseries. Additionally, mangroves are important for larger mammals such as monkeys, sloths, tigers, and hyenas.

CARBON SEQUESTERATION:

Sequestration means storage. Carbon or CO2 sequestration means putting carbon into long-term storage. Importantly, carbon sequestration both a natural and artificial.Sequestration removes carbon dioxide from the Earth’s atmosphere and then stored in liquid or solid form. The removal and storage of carbon from the atmosphere to sinks – oceans, soil, forests – through physical means and the natural process best known as photosynthesis.

Terrestrial (or biologic) sequestration means using plants to capture CO2 from the atmosphere and then storing it as carbon in the stems and roots of the plants as well as in the soil. In photosynthesis, plants take in CO2 and give off oxygen (O2) to the atmosphere as a waste gas. The plants retain and use the carbon to live and grow. When the plant winters or dies, part of the carbon from the plant preserved (stored) in the soil.