Mysore/Mysuru: Karnataka Forest Minister Eshwar B. Khandre has directed officials to prepare a proposal for setting up Saalumarada Thimmakka Tree Parks in each Taluk and to increase the forest cover in Mysuru and Mandya districts.

Such parks must come up in Mysuru and Mandya districts where there are no Botanical Gardens (Tree Parks) or timber Tree Parks, he said.

The Minister was speaking at the progress review meeting held at Aranya Bhavan in city yesterday where he emphasised that tree conservation is essential to combat global temperature rise and climate change in this era.

While the State has a green cover of over 22 percent of the total geographical land, it is 16 percent for Mysuru district and includes National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries.

Increasing global temperature and climate variations make it necessary to increase the tree population to mitigate the impact. The State Government has taken a significant decision to plant 50 million trees and recommended providing more plants to tackle the situation, the Minister added.

In line with this, the Forest Minister instructed officials to ensure the construction of timber Tree Parks in areas where Botanical Gardens are not there.

On the issue of delayed salary payments to daily-wage and outsourced workers, he said that there have been complaints and necessary measures will be taken to ensure the timely payment of wages to poor workers.

In relation to the upcoming Dasara festival, elephants have always been the main attraction in Dasara Jumboo Savari. For this year’s event, it was informed that a total of 14 elephants will be selected according to all regulations and guidelines.

The Forest Department officials were instructed to ensure strict adherence to the rules during the elephant selection process and training, to prevent any abnormalities or mistreatment.