Area of mangrove forests of Indus Delta and land use was ascertained with the help of Landsat TM multi-temporal data. In addition, change in mangrove forests from 1992-2001 was detected. The results revealed that in 2001 total area of Indus delta was 0.665million ha of which 0.155million ha (23%) was under mangrove forests. Most of the mangrove forests were found in Mirpursakro, Shah Bunder, Keti Bunder, Ghorabari and Kharo Chan Talukas. Change detection maps showed that from 1992 to 1997 and 1997 to 2001 about 47000 ha (22.93% reduction over 1992) and 3000 ha (1.90% over 1997) of mangrove forests were vanished, respectively. Most of the deforestation occurred in Jati Taluka (district Thatta). Urbanization, development of aquaculture, indiscriminate use of pesticides, industrial effluents, oil spill over, biotic pressure, diversion of river Indus water to agriculture land and persistent drought are the principal reasons of deforestation. Present study was conducted with Landsat TM multi-temporal data however, for precise monitoring, use of high resolution satellite imagery and GPS is recommended. In addition, it is also suggested that canopy density be considered for accurate assessment of the forest area.

Key words: Mangrove forests, Landsat TM, Indus Delta, Monitoring