The State’s largest biodiversity park equipped with multiple facilities and attached to a horticulture farm will be set up over 85 acres of land in Gudiyatham taluk, allotted to the Horticulture Department.
Workers are currently working to level the ground in Agaramcheri village ahead of the construction of the biodiversity park. After the trifurcation of Vellore district into Vellore, Ranipet and Tirupattur last year, the Navlock Farm and Horticulture Garden near Ranipet became part of the newly-formed district.
Hence, it was decided a new biodiversity park would be set up in the Vellore district boundaries to ensure availability of quality seeds for farmers at subsidised rates and to safeguard native tree and plant species. The park will come up at Agaramcheri village in Gudiyatham and the preliminary work is under way to get a clear picture on the available land.
When it comes into existence, the park will be the biggest of its kind in the State, an official from the Horticulture Department said.
World class facilities have been planned for visitors and their stay at the park and it is being expected to improve tourism in the district, he said.
For indigenous species
The park will be filled with species of trees categorised according to climate and a section of the park will be dedicated to sthala vrikshas, monumental trees found in South Indian temples. The facility will also nurse indigenous species of plants.
Besides, endangered flora will be maintained through a germ plasm centre, which will also have a host of tourist-related activities. The proposed park will also raise nurseries for coconut and paddy in addition to lime, mango, guava, chikku, pomegranate, jackfruit and kodukapuli varieties, he added.
Flower varieties and herbal plants will be grown for research as well. To sustain availability of Siddha and Ayurveda-related plant species, the park will have a herbal garden where such herbs and plants will be grown.
The official added that a model of the park has been handed over to the Tamil Nadu Horticultural Development Agency (TANHODA) and once the proposal is accepted by the Finance Committee, the work of planting tree saplings and creating boundaries would start, the official concluded.
