LocationsWhen the Sea Came Back: How a Coastal village in Maharashtra is Bringing Back its Mangroves
July 26, 2025
In the fishing village of Jui, the tide is turning. This small village, located in Uran block of Maharashtra’s Raigad district, is seeing a quiet revival. Where debris and plastic waste once covered the nearby creek’s banks, tiny mangrove saplings now sway gently in the breeze.
Madhuri Bhoir, Member of Mangrove Co-Management Committee of Jui village
“It didn’t use to be like this,” says Madhuri Bhoir, a rice farmer and member of the Mangrove Co-Management Committee of Jui, who is responsible for conserving mangroves in the village. “Mangroves were known as the guardians of our fields, protecting our land and crops from ‘Jor Katha’ (high tide). My father and other elderly villagers used to tend the mangroves, guarding each other’s fields. It was a collective responsibility. However, with time, this practice faded, and we forgot their importance.”
A changing coastline, a community at risk
Uran is developing rapidly. It is home to one of India’s busiest ports and soon, a planned city—popularly referred to as the ‘Third Mumbai’. As infrastructure projects expanded, much of the mangrove cover in villages like Aware, Jui, and Dighode was lost. These mangroves once formed a natural shield between the sea and the land.
Without them, communities faced multiple challenges. Farms experienced saltwater intrusion. Small-scale fishers, especially women who collect shellfish and estuarine fish, saw their catch decline. The risk of flooding and storm damage increased with fewer natural buffers along the creeks.
A quiet comeback, one sapling at a time
Mangrove restoration work: Sowing mangrove propagules or seedlings
In June 2024, a mangrove restoration project began across the three villages. Led by the Mangrove Cell of the Maharashtra Forest Department with support from the Green Climate Fund and UNDP India through the Enhancing Climate Resilience of India’s Coastal Communities (ECRICC) project, the goal was to bring life back to these vulnerable patches of land and sea.
The effort began with experts and forest staff from the Mangrove Cell using satellite images and on-the-ground surveys to identify areas with the best chance of recovery. To help the tide reach these zones again, narrow tidal channels known as fish-bones were carved.
Villagers played an active role. Local families collected and planted over 75,000 mangrove propagules, the floating seedlings that help mangroves spread and take root in wet, muddy areas. They started with species like Ceriops tagal and Bruguiera cylindrica, which adapt well to disturbed areas. These are hardy plants that can survive where the soil is salty and the water levels keep changing. Once these take root, they make the area more stable and create better conditions for a healthy mangrove forest to come back over time.
Forest guards, most of whom were new to mangrove conservation, received hands-on training from ecologists and restoration experts from the Mangrove Cell and the ECRICC project team.
Kishor Sonawane, alongwith other forest guards observing the restoration sites
“This restoration was a collective endeavour of the Forest Department and the villagers,” said Kishor Sonawane, Round Forest Officer for Uran. “We focused on improving biodiversity by planting species that are rare in this landscape. The additional diversity is helping families.”
Creating jobs, restoring dignity
Parag Thakur desilting channels to ensure water supply for the plantation
“This wasn’t just about trees, says Parag Thakur who has actively laboured in the restoration work and now works as the watchman of the site. “The project created several months of paid labour for people like me. We usually relied on seasonal or informal work. This helped us in finding steady income through planting, patrolling, nursery work, and construction of channels. Nearly 75 households have benefitted. I too hold a stable source of income close to my home now.”
Early signs of recovery
Within three months, the land began to change. Mangrove saplings sprouted naturally, crab burrows reappeared, salt-tolerant grasses returned, and birdsong became more frequent. In one village, residents even spotted a hawksbill turtle for the first time in years. Hawksbill turtles are critically endangered and highly sensitive to habitat changes. Their presence suggests that the restored mangrove environment is once again becoming a viable nesting or feeding ground.
As awareness grew, waste dumping reduced. Young people organised clean-up drives, and schools began bringing children to observe the changes firsthand and learn.
What was once dismissed as a degraded patch of land is now looked after as a shared community resource.
“Return of mangroves has also brought new income sources,” says Bhoir. “While we continue to farm paddy, many of us are now exploring crab farming. My husband recently started a crab pond in our field—something made possible because the mangroves are helping us harness it again. The ECRICC project team made us aware of this opportunity.”
What lies ahead
The next step is to introduce sturdier mangrove species like Rhizophora, which can stabilise the outer banks and provide safe habitats for young fish. Plans are underway to set up a community-run nursery to supply saplings. Local schools will also play a role in tracking bird and wildlife sightings through a citizen science initiative.
But perhaps the most meaningful shift is in mindset. People no longer refer to the area as government land or a forest department project. Now, they simply call it “our mangroves.”
Blog by Amar Nikam, Project Associate-Forestry, GCF ECRICC Project, Raigad.
Photographs by Abhishek Gijare, Communications Associate, UNDP India.
The Enhancing Climate Resilience of India’s Coastal Communities (ECRICC) project is led by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change with support from the Green Climate Fund and UNDP India. The project supports nature-based solutions to protect and restore India’s coastlines, and to help coastal communities adapt to the realities of climate change.
“This restoration was a collective endeavour of the Forest Department and the villagers,” said Kishor Sonawane, Round Forest Officer for Uran. “We focused on improving biodiversity by planting species that are rare in this landscape. The additional diversity is helping families.”
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