Community-led mangrove effort in Odisha enabled by Reliance Foundation

Coastal communities across three districts in Odisha are enhancing their mangrove cover with Reliance Foundation’s support to better resist cyclones, storm surges and shoreline erosion that have been altering the landscape, affecting ecological balance and impacting livelihoods. Over the past year, about 55,000 mangrove plants were planted with Reliance Foundation’s support in vulnerable areas in Balasore, Jagatsinghpur and Ganjam districts.

Ahead of International Day for the Conservation of the Mangrove Ecosystem on July 26, mangrove plantation in these cyclone vulnerable areas of Odisha are being stepped up and awareness enhancement efforts, especially for youth and school-children, are being organised by Reliance Foundation and its partnering organisations.

In Kharasahapur village, Balasore, more than 50 residents have been involved since June 2023 in plating mangroves across a 1 km stretch of the coastline. After the 1999 Super Cyclone, Phailin has been one of the most devastating cyclones for the village, as recounted by members of the community. Reliance Foundation has facilitated knowledge transfer from scientific experts, sourcing mangrove plant material and guided the community in management of plantation.

The Kharasahapur community’s commitment to sustaining the initiative can be best seen in the establishment of a thriving mangrove nursery at this location, which has ensured a steady supply of plants for plantation. In its initial days, the plantation initiative at Kharasahapur began through the sourcing of mangrove hypocotyle (a part of the plant’s stem that is transplantable) from Bhitarkanika National Park about 120 km away.

Mangroves are susceptible to natural disasters as well as human activity. In resisting cyclonic winds and reducing flooding, even fully-grown mangrove trees get affected. Human activity like fishing, plying boats and livestock grazing depletes mangrove cover and disturbs the ecosystem.

Therefore, residents of Kharasahapur remain ever vigilant and protect the budding plants by fencing the plants and promptly responding to other challenges. Reliance Foundation has been actively advocating mangrove conservation in the village and other nearby villages especially among youth, livestock owners and fisherpersons through awareness activities.

Fostering community ownership in Kharasahapur by helping members of the community lead the approach has resulted in active participation of all groups of people, notably women, in the mangrove effort. More than 30,000 plants have been planted at the Kharasahapur plantation site till date.

Reliance Foundation works with vulnerable coastal communities in disaster risk reduction and to make livelihoods climate resilient. Early warning alerts are disseminated during times of disasters and the capacity to respond to such events is enhanced in communities through regular engagement and trainings. Reliance Foundation has responded to more than 50 disasters across India in the past 10 years, including floods, cyclones, landslides and earthquakes, bringing relief to people affected and helping them recover. As part of its efforts to ensure environment welfare and make communities climate-resilient, Reliance Foundation enabled the planting of over 5 lakh trees in the past year across the country.  

Community voices

“The 1999 Super Cyclone severely affected my village as the landfall was in our Gram Panchayat. Villages that had mangrove cover were then less affected. We are enhancing our mangrove cover with Reliance Foundation to mitigate cyclone impact, check sea water from entering our fields and to protect the Olive Ridley Turtle,” said Sukhanto Kumar, a resident of Padmapur village in Jagatsinghpur district, who is a part of the mangrove efforts in his village.

“Besides offering storm protection, mangroves are crucial to our livelihoods and for conserving the ecosystem. They are also important for survival of species like the Horseshoe crab, whose sightings have increased ever since we established the nursery. People of my village are more aware of the importance of mangroves and their systematic management following our association with Reliance Foundation. Seeing the plants come up is highly motivating and has encouraged the village to create a mangrove forest cover,” said Bharat Chandra, a resident of Kharasahapur who is involved in the plantation effort.