• Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has unveiled draft Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF) for coastal zone management.
• It was prepared by Society for Integrated Coastal Management, a MoEFCC-affiliated body as part of a World Bank-funded project.
• It lays out guidelines out for coastal States to adopt when they approve and regulate projects in coastal zones.
• It seeks to assist Central Government in enhancing coastal resource efficiency and resilience, by building collective capacity (including communities and decentralised governance) for adopting and implementing integrated coastal management approaches

It proposes key activities for coastal zone development that consist of investments by States including mangrove afforestation/shelter beds, habitat conservation activities such as restoration of sea-grass meadows, rearing/rescue centres for turtles and other marine animals, creation of infrastructure for tourism, beach cleaning and development etc.