Chennai

Over the next five years, 10 beaches in the State would be upgraded with the active support of local bodies to achieve the prestigious Blue Flag Certification that mandates higher standards of quality, safety, environmental education and information and safety services, he said.

The government would also launch the Green Tamil Nadu Mission to increase the total area under the forest and tree cover to 33 per cent of the land area of the State. Under the project, a massive programme to plant saplings of indigenous and diverse species, in coordination with multiple departments, public and private institutions, would be taken up with people‟s participation over 10 years of period, he said. Special attention would be paid to the modernisation of the forest force by equipping them with modern equipment and technology, including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), artificial intelligence, GIS and MIS-based management systems, updated weaponry and forest worthy vehicles, the budget said. India’s first Integrated environment monitoring studio would be established for forecasting air quality on a real-time basis with an early warning system, the Finance Minister said.

Another flagship project would be the Tamil Nadu Wetlands Mission aimed to identify and map 100 wetlands in five years and restore the ecological balance with a focus on livelihood options for Rs 150 crore. To prevent flooding and waterlogging, 1,000 low lying areas were identified through Revenue and Disaster Management authority for flood mitigation. The budget also spoke about reviving the tourism sector and restoration of the Thiruvalluvar statue in Kanniyakumari.

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