VISAKHAPATNAM: With rising climate risks and repeated exposure to cyclones, storm surges and coastal erosion, the State government has begun the structured implementation of the Great Green Wall Project along the coast as a long-term coastal protection initiative.
The programme, launched under the leadership of Deputy Chief Minister K Pawan Kalyan, is also being implemented in the Visakhapatnam Circle, which comprises the coastal districts of Visakhapatnam, Anakapalle, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam. The Circle covers a total coastline of about 344 km, along with other coastal districts in the State.
Conceived as a large-scale ecological bio-shield, the project is designed to strengthen natural coastal defences while safeguarding communities, livelihoods, infrastructure and fragile ecosystems. Rather than being a single plantation drive, it is structured as an integrated green barrier system combining shelter-belt plantations, mangrove restoration, sand dune stabilisation and community forestry into a continuous coastal protection framework.
Explaining the approach, Chief Conservator of Forests of Visakhapatnam Circle, BM Diwan Mydeen, said the project is being implemented as a long-term ecological security system for the coastline. “Activities planned under the programme include the expansion of casuarina shelter-belts, palmyrah dibbling, coconut plantations, regeneration of mangrove forests, strengthening of sand reaches with sand-binding species, block plantations in vacant lands using fast-growing species, avenue plantations along coastal roads, and community plantations on government lands using wind-breaking species, along with wildlife conservation measures,” he explained.
Within the 344-km coastal stretch, multiple shelter-belt areas have been identified, notified and proposed for notification under various provisions of the Andhra Pradesh Forest Act, providing the legal and administrative framework for the project. Srikakulam district, which has the longest coastline at 193 km, has 31 shelter-belt blocks, of which 14 are notified under Sections 15, 4 and 24 of the Act, covering 5,819.75 hectares. Vizianagaram district, with a 28-km coastline, has seven shelter-belt blocks, all notified under Sections 4 and 24, covering 69.50 hectares.
Visakhapatnam district has a 70-km coastal stretch with four shelter-belt blocks, of which two are notified under Section 24, covering 474.57 hectares.
Anakapalle district, with a 53-km coastline, has 10 shelter-belt blocks, with one notified under Section 4, covering 885.46 hectares. In total, the Visakhapatnam Circle comprises 52 shelter-belt blocks, of which 24 are notified and 28 are un-notified, covering a combined area of 7,219.28 hectares.
Diwan Mydeen noted that certain mangrove areas fall under other administrative controls, including the Indian Navy and the Naval Dockyard in Visakhapatnam, and the Revenue Department in Srikakulam, necessitating coordinated inter-departmental planning.
Field-level implementation has already begun. During the 2025 planting season, about 2.60 lakh palmyrah nuts were dibbled across the four coastal districts over 312 hectares.
Of these, 50,000 nuts each were planted in Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram and Anakapalle, while 1.10 lakh nuts were dibbled in Srikakulam district. For the 2026–27 season, further plantation activities are proposed over 575 hectares under the CAMPA scheme, with about 100 hectares in Visakhapatnam, 60 hectares in Anakapalle, 65 hectares in Vizianagaram and 350 hectares in Srikakulam.