India’s LT-LEDS points to seven transitory pathways, including CO₂ removal and enhancement of forest and vegetative cover as a core pillar to net zero by 2070. While there is much emphasis on terrestrial forests, there is also increasing recognition that coastal and blue carbon ecosystems, such as mangroves, are central to both mitigation and climate resilience. Mangroves store upto 3 to 4 times more carbon/acre than tropical forests, and their loss contributes to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation (WWF), making it pivotal for climate mitigation (Worthington and Spalding, 2018). They have the potential to establish durable blue carbon sinks, act as a bio-shield against calamities such as cyclones and storm surges, and support coastal livelihoods through small-scale fisheries and eco-tourism. India currently has about 4,992 km² of mangroves, representing 0.15% of its geographic area (ISFR, 2019). Leveraging this ecosystem and restoring the lost ones will make a significant contribution to India’s net-zero goals. Against this backdrop, the current study explores how mangrove restoration contributes to India’s LT-LEDS, including case studies from different parts of India that support mitigation, adaptation and livelihood co-benefits.

Mangroves of India

Mangroves are salt-tolerant trees and shrubs that grow along tropical and subtropical shorelines, forming dense coastal forests that harbour wildlife, protect coasts from storms and erosion, and support local communities that rely on them for fuel, food, and other resources (PIB, 2025). India’s mangroves are spread across three major regions: the east and west coasts and the Andaman, Nicobar, and Lakshadweep islands, making the country one of the world’s richest regions for mangrove biodiversity. Sundarbans and Gujarat alone occupy ~66% of the nation’s mangrove cover (Figure 1). Despite the importance, these ecosystems are under significant pressure from coastal development, aquaculture, salt farming, and the impacts of climate change, such as sea-level rise and frequent storms, making it both highly valuable and highly vulnerable. To leverage and restore these blue carbon sinks, India has managed to respond and adapt to state-led restoration and key initiatives through three main strategies: a) promotory, b) regulatory and c) participatory (Kathiresan, 2018). 

Source: ISFR (2019)

Within this broad framework, India’s legal measures include, Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification, 2019, which groups mangroves as Ecologically Sensitive Areas (ESAs), restricting activities within a 50-metre buffer where mangrove cover exceeds 1,000 sq. m. It also requires compensatory planting at a 3:1 ratio when mangroves are damaged and provides additional protection under the Wildlife Protection Act, the Indian Forest Act, and the Biological Diversity Act. Promotory efforts focus on expanding and restoring mangrove habitats. The Mangrove Initiative for Shoreline Habitats and Tangible Incomes (MISHTI) programme, launched in 2023, aims to scale up restoration and afforestation across multiple coastal States and Union Territories using CAMPA funds, while the National Coastal Mission channels financial support for conservation of 38 mangrove sites and 4 coral reefs. The Green Climate Fund-ECRICC project points to the climate resilience lens, aiming to restore large tracts in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Odisha. Many of these initiatives rely on local communities, gram panchayats, and women SHGs for planting, protection and monitoring, reflecting the participatory efforts of India’s mangrove management.

Mangroves for climate change mitigation

Blue carbon ecosystems, particularly mangroves, are considered one of the most carbon-dense ecosystems on earth (Taillardat et al., 2018). Research shows that total ecosystem carbon stocks (tree and dead wood biomass, soil carbon content, and soil depth) in mangroves amount to an average of 1,023 mg carbon per hectare in the Indo-Pacific region (Donato et al., 2011). A scenario modelling analysis on the Bhitarkanika mangroves in Odisha shows that projected disturbances to mangrove forests could release about 2.16 Tg C back into the atmosphere by 2030. While under a more optimistic scenario, however, these mangroves can sequester around 1.55 Tg C. Increasing mangrove and overall green cover has also been shown to lead a maximum reduction in sediment exports by 24.9% and nutrient export by 7.6%. 

A global analysis has concluded that ~6% of the degraded mangrove area is restorable and full restoration of these areas has immense carbon sequestration potential, including an aboveground biomass sequestration of 69 Mt of C, corresponding to annual emissions from 25 million US homes (Worthington and Spalding, 2018). A study in India has shown that villages that kept their coastal mangroves had fewer storm-surge deaths, recovered better with less soil salinisation than those behind breached seawalls, pointing to a low-cost, self-repairing defence (Spalding et al., 2014). In brief, given the evidence, protecting existing mangroves and restoring degraded ones can help deliver high-impact, relatively low-cost mitigation at national and regional scales, especially in places with rapid coastal land-use change. 

Challenges for mangrove expansion and restoration

Despite the evidence of climate and livelihood benefits, mangrove expansion and restoration face many challenges. The primary drivers of mangrove loss include coastal development, altered hydrology, aquaculture expansion, urbanisation, and pollution, resulting in an estimated one-third of global mangrove loss over the last half-century. Global analysis for 2000–2016 shows that about 62% of mangrove loss is due to land-use change, mainly conversion to aquaculture and agriculture, with much of this concentrated in a few Southeast Asian countries. While direct clearing shows a declining trend, natural drivers, such as erosion, account for a significant share of loss. This means that even with improved conservation and restoration, mangroves are still being lost to coastal processes and climate-related changes (Goldberg et al., 2020). Apart from these, collaborative efforts between administrative bodies to manage overlapping jurisdictions remain to be a challenge (Poti et al., 2025).

Despite the challenges, certain programmes and efforts (in India) have shown a reversal of losses and where local and policy institutions are supportive and collaborative, even expansion can be seen. Some of the success stories are discussed below. 

Success stories

1. Muthupet, Tamil Nadu (Green Tamil Nadu Mission)

Under the Green Tamil Nadu Mission between 2022 and 2025, the state launched a large-scale restoration of the Muthupet mangrove wetland complex, Tamil Nadu’s largest mangrove forest. Muthupet had experienced severe degradation over the years due to siltation, blocked tidal inflows, and canopy loss, which converted once-thriving mangrove areas into barren mudflats, affecting biodiversity and fishing livelihoods (The Better India, 2025). In response, the Tiruvarur Forest Division, under the Green Tamil Nadu Mission, worked with more than 10,000 residents from 16 fishing villages through Village Mangrove Councils to restore tidal connectivity and re-establish native mangrove cover. Using scientifically designed “fishbone” and “box” canal networks, over 380 km of canals were desilted or newly excavated. A mix of natural regeneration and planting was used. In total, 2,057 hectares were revived out of which 1,350 ha were through new plantations and 707 ha through hydrological restoration across Thanjavur (1,482 ha) and Tiruvarur (575 ha). The project also generated more than 86,000 person-days of paid work between 2022–23 and 2023–24, providing income for women’s self-help groups, landless labourers and traditional fishers.

The design of the Muthupet programme reflects lessons from earlier science-based and community-centred mangrove restoration led by the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) along the east coast. Since the mid-1990s, MSSRF worked with the Forest Departments of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha to manage mangrove degradation and to pilot “joint mangrove management” models that combined tidal restoration, native species and community co-management (Selvam and Thamizoli, 2021). This is an example of how combining scientific principles, traditional knowledge and community engagement can establish large-scale mangrove restoration.

2. Jui, Maharashtra (ECRICC – Mangrove Cell, Maharashtra Forest Department)

In the fishing village of Jui in Uran block, rapid port-led development and urbanisation have led to the loss of large stretches of mangroves, resulting in increased flooding and salinity, and negatively impacting fishing and shellfish collection for local households. Under the Enhancing Climate Resilience of India’s Coastal Communities (ECRICC) project, the Mangrove Cell of the Maharashtra Forest Department, with support from the Green Climate Fund and UNDP India, started a mangrove restoration initiative across Jui and neighbouring villages. Using satellite images and field surveys, sites were identified for recovery, and narrow tidal channels were cut to reconnect them with the sea. Local families then collected and planted around 75,000 mangrove propagules. Within a span of three months, signs of natural regeneration alongside planted saplings, more crabs and birds in restored patches, and reduced dumping of waste were observed. This has also created several months of wage employment for local people through channel desilting, nursery work and planting, with women and landless workers directly involved in the activities (UNDP, 2025).

Conclusion and way forward 

From the success stories and the scholarship, mangroves clearly emerge as a pivotal element in India’s long-term climate strategy, offering benefits through high carbon storage, coastal protection, and livelihood benefits at relatively low cost. The recent on-ground examples from Muthupet and Jui show that where scientific principles, supportive policies, and community engagement operate together, degraded mangroves can be restored at scale while creating local employment and strengthening resilience. An often-overlooked dimension in these cases is sustained investment in science-based restoration, such as assessing site hydrology before planting, prioritising native species and natural regeneration, and building long-term technical and financial capacity beyond short project cycles. Conserving blue carbon ecosystems will maintain carbon sequestration into the future and prevent emissions from land-use change (Taillardat et al., 2018). However, severe data limitations need to be addressed if we are to robustly demonstrate the role of blue carbon in meeting the targets of the Paris Agreement. 

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