**Acknowledgements**

The authors are thankful to Director Shri D. K. Das, Space Applications Centre (SAC), Indian Space Research Organisation, Ahmedabad, for his encouragement and support towards coral reef targeted research programmes. The authors thank Dr. Rajkumar Sharma, Deputy Director, EPSA/SAC, and Dr. Bimal K. Bhattacharya, Division Head, Agriculture and Land-Ecosystems Division, for their constant encouragement and support to prepare this manuscript. The authors thank Dr. Sushma Panigrahy, former Group Director, ABHG/EPSA/SAC, for her guidance and inspiration to undertake this study.

The authors are thankful to the Chief Conservator of Forests, Marine National Park (MNP), Jamnagar, for necessary permission and support towards carrying out the field survey at Laku Point reef, Poshitra. The authors thank Shri Nitin Patel, Senior Research Fellow, GEER Foundation, Gandhinagar, for helping in the field data collection during the March 2011 field survey. The authors are thankful to Shri Prabakaran, C. former Research Fellow, SAC, for his kind support in field data collection. Nandini Ray Chaudhury is thankful to Dr. Dimpal Sanghvi for her kind help in the manuscript preparation.
