Chhattisgarh: Chhattisgarh CM Baghel would inaugurate India’s biggest man-made forest on September 15. The forest is coming up on 2500 acres of abandoned mining land in Nandini hills in Durg- Bhilai district. Collector Dr Sarvewar Narendra Bhure inspected the area on Saturday taking stock of the land. According to the plan devised by the authorities, the land would be host to 83,000 samplings in the first phase that would grow into a full-fledged forest in 3 years.
The mine was used to supply limestone to SAIL’s Bhilai Steel Plant but has been abandoned for the past few years. Forest cover in the Nandini area used to be around 17 kilometres before mining started. The conversion of the abandoned limestone site into a forest would pave recognition for the state. The project would be completed by Rs 3.30 crore funded by the District Mineral Foundation (DMF).
The project has been devised taking a cue from the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration that aims to prevent, halt and reverse the degradation of ecosystems and to combat climate change and prevent mass extinction.
