Urban forest set up in Kudla

Mangaluru: On Gandhi Jayanti , the city took the maiden step towards setting up of what is the first of 50 proposed ‘Miyawaki’ urban forest. Located on a small triangular strip of land abutting the entrance of Dakshina Kannada zilla panchayat office at Ashoknagar, the urban forest is the result of concerted efforts put in by Ramakrishna Mission and authorities of zilla panchayat with active support from the department of forest.

With R Selvamani, chief executive officer, zilla panchayat, getting clearance to utilise this land for setting up the forest, Ramakrishna Mission, with assistance from the department, procured 100 saplings from 40 different tree varieties. Selvamani led the gathering in planting these saplings spaced out at a gap of 1 metre. An equal number of saplings of other varieties of trees will be planted in the gap between the saplings already planted.

Swami Ekagamyananda, convenor, Swachh Mangaluru Abhiyan, Ramakrishna Mission said Miyawaki urban forest is the solution for fast disappearing green cover in urban settings. It entails planting saplings in close proximity that conditions them to grow upward rather than sideward.