Maharashtra Forest minister Sudhir Mungantiwar on Thursday said the mangrove park at Gorai will be open for tourists within two years, whereas the one at Dahisar will be opened by 2022.
An official from the Forest department said the state government has undertaken the creation of two mangrove forest gardens in 38 hectares of land. “Of these two parks, one is being created at Gorai in the area of eight hectares, costing Rs. 26.97 crore. The second garden is being created in an area of 30 hectares in Dahisar costing Rs. 48.80 crore,” he said.
He added that the Gorai mangrove forest project is proposed to be open for tourists in the Diwali of 2021. “Plans are made according to it. The District Planning Committee has provided funds for the project,” said Mungantiwar. The park will have attractions like nature experience centre, mangrove trail, bird-watching tower, boat tourism by locals etc, he added.
The Dahisar mangrove forest garden project is in the process of getting administrative approval. “This mangrove forest has a vast bio-diversity and 11 species can be found here. Hence, this area will prove important for tourists and experts from the perspective of entertainment and research. Employment opportunities will also be made available for the locals here,” said Mungantiwar.
Mangrove forests exist in 30,000 hectares area in the state. Of them, 17,000 hectares area is government-owned and 13,000 hectares area is situated on private land.
