Sun Jun 29 16:30:27 UTC 2025: **Summary:**
The Forest Department is planting 30,000 native tree saplings in the Madukkarai forest range, between the Ettimadai and Walayar railway stations. This afforestation effort, part of the Restoration of Degraded Forests Landscape Project funded by NABARD, aims to restore the area after the removal of invasive plant species like Lantana camara from 50 hectares of the 300-hectare sandwich forest.
**News Article:**
**Coimbatore Forest Department Launches Major Afforestation Project in Madukkarai Range**
**COIMBATORE, June 29, 2025** – The Forest Department is undertaking a significant afforestation project in the Madukkarai forest range, planting 30,000 native tree saplings to restore degraded forest land. The project targets the area between the Ettimadai and Walayar railway stations, a sandwich forest within the Solakkarai reserve forest.
According to Forest Range Officer R. Arun Kumar, the initiative is focused on a 50-hectare area where invasive species, primarily Lantana camara, have been cleared. The removal of these alien plants was funded by the Forest Department, freeing the area for native trees to thrive.
“We are planting saplings of tree species that are commonly found in this region,” said Kumar. “These saplings were carefully raised in our own nursery.”
The afforestation drive is part of the larger Restoration of Degraded Forests Landscape Project, receiving crucial financial support from the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD). The project aims to revitalize a 300-hectare forest area that had been compromised by invasive plant growth.
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