The mangrove cover of the Indian Sundarbans has reduced drastically by over 40% from the year 1776 to 2020. This has led various true mangrove species such as Sonneratia griffithii Kurz to become critically endangered, Heritiera fomes Buch. Ham. to be classified as endangered and Ceriops decandra Ding Hou, Aegialitis rotundifolia Roxb. and Phoenix paludosa Roxb. to be classified as near threatened. The factors affecting vegetation are both ecological and anthropogenic. From the ecological point of view, the tilting of the Bengal basin tectonically has resulted in the accumulation of excess saltwater in the Indian Sundarbans while most of the freshwater is being received in the Bangladesh side of the mangrove belt. As a result major stenohaline species are depleting From the anthropogenic standpoint, forests are not only being cleared for dwelling but also for agricultural land use. Replantation programs over the years have not been sustainable as the nature of natural succession has not been maintained while planting of the seeds and seedlings in the tidal inundation zones, and as a result even the pioneering species have not been able to survive.

The project aims to characterize the rhizospheric microflora of the true mangroves and abundant fern flora of the Indian Sundarbans