Lok Sabha Question No. 1033 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2020-02-07
Subject: Change in Forest Cover
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Raja Amareshwara Naik, Bhola Singh, Sangeeta Kumari Singh Deo, Sushil Kumar Singh, Jayanta Kumar Roy, Sukanta Majumdar, Vinod Kumar Sonkar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.  1033

TO BE ANSWERED ON 07.02.2020

## Change in Forest Cover

## 1033.   SHRI RAJA AMARESHWARA NAIK:

SHRI BHOLA SINGH:

SHRIMATI SANGEETA KUMARI SINGH DEO:

SHRI SUSHIL KUMAR SINGH:

DR. JAYANTA KUMAR ROY:

DR. SUKANTA MAJUMDAR:

SHRI VINOD KUMAR SONKAR:

Will  the  Minister  of  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND  CLIMATE  CHANGE  be  pleased  to state:

- (a) whether the 'India State of Forest Report 2019' has recently been released and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether there is change in forest cover in 2019 viz-a-viz 2017, if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor;
- (c) the States that showed most increase in forest area along with top five States in terms of percentage of area under forest, State/UT-wise;
- (d) whether any legal provision exists to check deforestation and large scale felling of trees, if so, the details thereof along with the funds sanctioned for protection and conservation of forests during the last three years, State/UT-wise; and
- (e) the  progress  made  so  far  along  with  the  steps  taken  by  the  Government  in  preparing comprehensive mapping of forest cover/area in the country?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE (SHRI BABUL SUPRIYO)

- (a) & (b)The India State of forest Report (ISFR) 2019 was released on 30 th December, 2019 by  the  Ministry  of  Environment,  Forest  and  Climate  Change.  The  total  forest  and  tree cover of the country, as per the ISFR 2019is 8, 07,276 square kilometre (km 2 ), which is 24.56% of the total  geographical  area  of  the  country.  It  comprises  of  7,  12,249  km 2 of Forest  Cover,  and  95,027  km 2 of  Tree  Cover.  The  ISFR  2019  shows  an  increase  of 5,188km 2 (forest cover 3,976 km 2 and tree cover 1,212 km 2 ) over that of ISFR 2017.

As  per  ISFR  2019,  forest  cover  has  increased  in  most  of  the  States  and  UTs  due  to plantation  and  conservation  activities.  However,  some  decline  in  forest  cover  has  been observed in a few States/UTs due to various reasons such as shifting cultivation, mining, construction of dams, road and railway network, etc.

- (c)   The top five States in ISFR 2019 that showed most increase in forest cover over ISFR 2017 are  Andhra  Pradesh  (3.52%),  Karnataka  (2.73%),  Kerala  (4.05%),  Jammu  and  Kashmir (1.60%) and Himachal Pradesh (2.21%).

The  top  five  States  in  term  of  percentage  of  the  total  geographical  area  under  forest  are Mizoram (85.41%), Arunachal Pradesh (79.63%), Meghalaya (76.33%), Manipur (75.46%) and Nagaland (75.31%).

- (d) The  responsibility of forest protection lies primarily with the respective State/UT Governments.  Accordingly,  the  State/  UT  Governments  take  necessary  action  under  the Indian Forest Act, 1927, Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 and various State Acts & Rules to check deforestation and large-scale felling.

The Ministry provides funds to States/UTs for protection and conservation of forests under various Centrally Sponsored Schemes. These include Forest Fire Prevention and Management (FPM)Scheme, National Afforestation Programme (NAP), National Mission for  a  Green  India  (GIM)and  Development  of  Wildlife  Habitats  (DWH).  The  recently promulgated  Compensatory  Afforestation  Fund  Rules,  2018  also  contain  provisions  for taking up assisted natural regeneration, artificial regeneration and silvicultural operations in forests  which  contribute  to  increase  in  forest  cover.  The  Ministry  also  supports  school nursery and urban forestry programmes through people's participation.

Afforestation activities are also taken up under various programmes/funding sources such as  Mahatma  Gandhi  National  Rural  Employment  Guarantee  Scheme,  Pradhan  Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana and under the schemes/plans of State/UT governments.

Details of fund released by the Ministry to the States/UTs for protection, development and promotion of forests under FPM, NAP, GIM and DWH during the last three years are given in Annexure  I,  II,  III,  IV respectively.  Details  of  funds  released  to  States/UTs  under Compensatory Afforestation Fund during the last three years by the Ad-hoc Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority are given in Annexure V .

- (e)    Forest  Survey  of  India  (FSI),  an  organization  under  the  Ministry,  carries  out  biennial mapping  and  assessment  of  forest  cover  using  satellite  based  remote  sensing  data  and intensive ground truthing. The findings are published in the India State of Forest Reports. So far, 16 assessments and mapping of forest cover have been carried out. The reports and the forest cover maps give information on total forest cover in various density classes at national, state and district levels.

Keeping in pace with the technology, methodology to access forest cover is periodically refined by FSI. Presently, mapping is carried out at a scale of 1:50,000 with a minimum mappable area of 1 hectare using LISS-III sensor data of Indian Remote Sensing Satellite.

********

Annexure I

## Annexure referred to in reply to part (d) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1033 due for answer on 07.02.2020 regarding 'Change in Forest Cover'

Details of fund released to States/UTs under Forest Fire Prevention and Management Scheme (Rs. in Crore)

| S. No.   | States/UTs              |   FY 2016-17 |   FY 2017-18 |   FY 2018-19 |
|----------|-------------------------|--------------|--------------|--------------|
| 1        | Andaman Nicobar Islands |       0.5623 |       0.09   |       0.2641 |
| 2        | Andhra Pradesh          |       0      |       0      |       2.6006 |
| 3        | Arunachal Pradesh       |       1.8134 |       1.02   |       0.8908 |
| 4        | Assam                   |       0      |       0      |       0.9323 |
| 5        | Bihar                   |       0.8859 |       0.075  |       0.5717 |
| 6        | Chandigarh              |       0.7452 |       0.008  |       0.01   |
| 7        | Chhattisgarh            |       2.1104 |       1.68   |       1.046  |
| 8        | Dadra &Nagar Haveli     |       0      |       0      |       0      |
| 9        | Daman &Diu              |       0      |       0      |       0      |
| 10       | Delhi                   |       0.5    |       0.3    |       0      |
| 11       | Goa                     |       0      |       0      |       0.8783 |
| 12       | Gujarat                 |       1.2226 |       0.75   |       0.9216 |
| 13       | Haryana                 |       0.9391 |       0.75   |       0      |
| 14       | Himachal Pradesh        |       3.3136 |       2.767  |       0      |
| 15       | Jammu &Kashmir          |       0.9561 |       0.75   |       0      |
| 16       | Jharkhand               |       1.9963 |       1.05   |       1.0784 |
| 17       | Karnataka               |       2.0327 |       1.05   |       1.747  |
| 18       | Kerala                  |       1.6365 |       2.3453 |       2.7957 |
| 19       | Lakshadweep             |       0      |       0      |       0      |
| 20       | Madhya Pradesh          |       2.8115 |       1.68   |       6.2825 |
| 21       | Maharashtra             |       3.7258 |       3.2158 |       7.8728 |
| 22       | Manipur                 |       1.2502 |       2.1988 |       2.3054 |
| 23       | Meghalaya               |       1.2657 |       1.0463 |       1.1353 |
| 24       | Mizoram                 |       1.3129 |       0.9059 |       1.1047 |
| 25       | Nagaland                |       1.7001 |       0.9256 |       0.8312 |
| 26       | Odisha                  |       2.6614 |       1.68   |       4.35   |
| 27       | Pondicherry             |       0      |       0.3    |       0.4984 |
| 28       | Punjab                  |       0      |       0.75   |       0      |
| 29       | Rajasthan               |       1.7422 |       1.05   |       0.9882 |
| 30       | Sikkim                  |       1.1973 |       1.4859 |       0      |
| 31       | Tamil Nadu              |       0.7429 |       1.05   |       0      |
| 32       | Telangana               |       0      |       1.05   |       0      |
| 33       | Tripura                 |       1.9076 |       0.66   |       1.0973 |
| 34       | Uttar Pradesh           |       1.3972 |       0.75   |       1.0061 |
| 35       | Uttarakhand             |       3.0403 |       1.68   |       4.3838 |
| 36       | West Bengal             |       0.9283 |       0.75   |       0.5414 |
|          | Grand Total             |      44.3975 |      34.5606 |      46.1336 |

## Annexure referred to in reply to part (d) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1033 due for answer on 07.02.2020 regarding 'Change in Forest Cover'

## Details of State wise funds released under National Afforestation Programme

|        |                   |            | (Rupees in Crore)   | (Rupees in Crore)   |
|--------|-------------------|------------|---------------------|---------------------|
| S. No. | State             | FY 2016-17 | FY 2017-18          | FY 2018-19          |
| 1      | Andhra Pradesh    | 1.33       | 3.36                | 6.38                |
| 2      | Bihar             | 2.18       | 4.23                | 0.00                |
| 3      | Chhattisgarh      | 4.92       | 10.86               | 7.82                |
| 4      | Goa               | 0.00       | 0.00                | 0.00                |
| 5      | Gujarat           | 4.36       | 0.00                | 0.00                |
| 6      | Haryana           | 3.50       | 2.71                | 0.00                |
| 7      | Himachal Pradesh  | 0.00       | 1.72                | 2.92                |
| 8      | Jammu &Kashmir    | 0.00       | 7.20                | 0.00                |
| 9      | Jharkhand         | 0.00       | 0.00                | 0.00                |
| 10     | Karnataka         | 7.33       | 3.24                | 10.99               |
| 11     | Kerala            | 0.00       | 0.00                | 0.00                |
| 12     | Madhya Pradesh    | 4.00       | 8.74                | 7.78                |
| 13     | Maharashtra       | 4.76       | 6.73                | 15.33               |
| 14     | Orissa            | 4.62       | 3.49                | 11.36               |
| 15     | Punjab            | 0.00       | 0.00                | 0.00                |
| 16     | Rajasthan         | 0.00       | 1.40                | 1.95                |
| 17     | Tamil Nadu        | 1.56       | 0.00                | 2.07                |
| 18     | Telangana         | 0.00       | 0.00                | 0.00                |
| 19     | Uttar Pradesh     | 2.55       | 0.67                | 0.32                |
| 20     | Uttarakhand       | 0.00       | 3.36                | 2.58                |
| 21     | West Bengal       | 0.00       | 0.00                | 0.00                |
| 22     | Arunachal Pradesh | 0.00       | 0.86                | 0.00                |
| 23     | Assam             | 0.00       | 0.00                | 0.58                |
| 24     | Manipur           | 1.21       | 3.19                | 4.38                |
| 25     | Meghalaya         | 0.00       | 1.65                | 0.74                |
| 26     | Mizoram           | 6.74       | 5.80                | 7.79                |
| 27     | Nagaland          | 5.21       | 5.85                | 6.41                |
| 28     | Sikkim            | 5.09       | 0.00                | 5.98                |
| 29     | Tripura           | 0.00       | 4.94                | 0.00                |
|        | Total             | 59.35      | 80.00               | 95.38               |

## Annexure III

## Annexure referred to in reply to part (d) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1033 due for answer on 07.02.2020 regarding 'Change in Forest Cover'

## State-wise details of funds released under Green India Mission

(Rupees in Crore)

| Sl. No.   | State          | FY 2016-17   | FY 2017-18   | FY 2018-19   |
|-----------|----------------|--------------|--------------|--------------|
| 1         | Andhra Pradesh | 1.0553       | 0.4460       | 2.6662       |
| 2         | Chhattisgarh   | 20.2301      | 10.9527      | 5.3607       |
| 3         | Karnataka      | 0.8685       | 0.8573       | 1.6233       |
| 4         | Kerala         | -            | -            | -            |
| 5         | Manipur        | 7.8228       | 6.4157       | 4.8881       |
| 6         | Mizoram        | 9.8835       | 20.00        | 22.3640      |
| 7         | Odisha         | 1.3896       | 1.4055       | 4.7433       |
| 8         | Punjab         | -            | 6.2173       | -            |
| 9         | Uttarakhand    | -            | -            | -            |
| 10        | Madhya Pradesh | -            | -            | 24.1591      |
| 11        | Maharashtra    | -            | -            | 10.3018      |
| 12        | Sikkim         | -            | -            | 3.3236       |
| 13        | West Bengal    | -            |              |              |
| Total     | Total          | 41.2499      | 46.2946      | 79.4304      |

Annexure referred to in reply to part (d) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1033 due for answer on 07.02.2020 regarding 'Change in Forest Cover'

## Details of funds released under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme 'Development of Wildlife Habitats'

(Rupees in Crore)

| S.No.   | States/UTs        |   FY 2016-17 |   FY 2017-18 |   FY 2018-19 |
|---------|-------------------|--------------|--------------|--------------|
| 1       | A&NIslands        |       1.1849 |       1.4193 |       1.91   |
| 2       | Andhra Pradesh    |       0      |       0      |       0.75   |
| 3       | Arunachal Pradesh |       2.5681 |       2.6993 |       3.4442 |
| 4       | Assam             |       0      |       2.7582 |       2.6532 |
| 5       | Bihar             |       1.0057 |       3.2267 |       7.49   |
| 6       | Chandigarh        |       0.2606 |       0.2606 |       0      |
| 7       | Chhattisgarh      |       2.7894 |       4.3501 |       3.5061 |
| 8       | Goa               |       0      |       0.8599 |       0      |
| 9       | Gujarat           |       4.976  |       5.5852 |      22.32   |
| 10      | Haryana           |       1.2465 |       1.8144 |       1.55   |
| 11      | Himachal Pradesh  |       2.8031 |       2.3741 |       3.703  |
| 12      | Jammu &Kashmir    |       3.365  |       5.7791 |       4.9243 |
| 13      | Jharkhand         |       0      |       0.956  |       0.5051 |
| 14      | Karnataka         |       3.2552 |       4.2789 |       6.53   |
| 15      | Kerala            |      19.2842 |       9.0083 |      12.934  |
| 16      | Madhya Pradesh    |       3.2226 |      13.7948 |       9.122  |
| 17      | Maharashtra       |       4.9735 |       8.0805 |      10.312  |
| 18      | Manipur           |       3.4003 |       4.2566 |       4.056  |
| 19      | Meghalaya         |       0.5523 |       1.1406 |       3.12   |
| 20      | Mizoram           |      12.3495 |       4.8744 |       4.3    |
| 21      | Nagaland          |       3.5784 |       5.6587 |       8.822  |
| 22      | Odisha            |       2.7965 |       3.4293 |       4.99   |
| 23      | Rajasthan         |       4.5387 |       6.2242 |       5.85   |
| 24      | Sikkim            |       1.4552 |       2.0215 |       3.94   |
| 25      | Tamil Nadu        |       0      |       3.9472 |       3.841  |
| 26      | Telangana         |       0      |       1.5708 |       0      |
| 27      | Uttar Pradesh     |       2.5095 |       3.8696 |       1.1981 |
| 28      | Uttarakhand       |       5.453  |      29.7936 |      17.641  |
| 29      | West Bengal       |       2.3766 |       6.5799 |       9.606  |
| 30      | Puducherry        |       0      |       0      |       0      |
| 31      | Lakshadweep       |       0      |       0.0671 |       0.463  |
| 32      | Delhi             |       0      |       0      |       5.519  |
| 33      | WII, Dehradun     |       0      |       0      |       0      |
|         | TOTAL             |      89.9454 |     150      |     165      |

## Annexure V

## Annexure referred to in reply to part (d) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1033 due for answer on 07.02.2020 regarding 'Change in Forest Cover' Details of State/UTs wise funds released under Compensatory Afforestation Fund by Ad-hoc CAMPA

| State/UT                  | FY 16-17       | FY-17-18          | FY-18-19          |
|---------------------------|----------------|-------------------|-------------------|
| State/UT                  | Release (Rs.)  | Release (Rs.)     | Release (Rs.)     |
| Andaman & Nicobar Islands | Nil            | 1,33,00,000.00    | 1,56,00,000.00    |
| Andhra Pradesh            | 890,000,000    | 97,00,00,000.00   | 1,04,47,00,000.00 |
| Arunachal Pradesh         | 1,500,000,000  |                   | 3,54,15,00,000.00 |
| Assam                     | 300,000,000    | 70,00,00,000.00   | 45,84,00,000.00   |
| Bihar                     | 330,000,000    | 30,31,00,000.00   | 46,61,90,000.00   |
| Chandigarh                | 10,000,000     | 1,13,00,000.00    | 1,27,00,000.00    |
| Chhattisgarh              | 2,800,000,000  | Nil               | Nil               |
| Dadar Nagar Haveli        | Nil            | Nil               | Nil               |
| Daman &Diu                | Nil            | Nil               | Nil               |
| Delhi                     | 40,000,000     | Nil               | Nil               |
| Goa                       |                | Nil               | Nil               |
| Gujarat                   | 990,000,000    | 27,00,00,000.00   | 2,12,6600,000.00  |
| Haryana                   | 180,000,000    | 80,00,00,000.00   | 1,44,20,00,000.00 |
| Himachal Pradesh          | 1,506,200,000  | 1,20,00,00,000.00 | 1,32,52,00,000.00 |
| Jammu Kashmir             | 1,020,000,000  | 69,00,00,000.00   | Nil               |
| Jharkhand                 | 1,490,000,000  | 2,34,00,00,000.00 | 2,86,25,00,000.00 |
| Karnataka                 | 851,200,000    | 86,00,00,000.00   | 1,01,40,00,000.00 |
| Kerala                    | Nil            | 8,00,00,000.00    | 14,61,00,000.00   |
| Lakshadweep               | Nil            | Nil               | Nil               |
| Madhya Pradesh            | 1,400,000,000  | 2,00,00,00,000.00 | 2,68,76,00,000.00 |
| Maharashtra               | 2,050,000,000  | 1,99,00,00,000.00 | 2,25,00,00,000.00 |
| Manipur                   | 150,000,000    | 29,50,00,000.00   | 24,85,00,000.00   |
| Meghalaya                 |                | 7,00,00,000.00    | Nil               |
| Mizoram                   | 77,300,000     | 6,85,00,000.00    | 8,30,00,000.00    |
| Nagaland                  | Nil            | Nil               | Nil               |
| Orissa                    | 4,260,000,000  | 5,09,00,00,000.00 | 5,54,00,00,000.00 |
| Pudducherry               | Nil            | Nil               | Nil               |
| Punjab                    | 660,000,000    | 64,00,00,000.00   | 79,20,00,000.00   |
| Rajasthan                 | 1,480,600,000  | 1,79,00,00,000.00 | 1,82,03,00,000.00 |
| Sikkim                    | 90,000,000     | Nil               | Nil               |
| Tamil Nadu                | 90,000,000     | 12,68,00,000.00   | 7,00,00,000.00    |
| Telangana                 | 1,170,000,000  | 1,27,00,00,000.00 | 2,37,38,00,000.00 |
| Tripura                   | 120,000,000    | 7,10,00,000       | 16,70,00,000.00   |
| Uttar Pradesh             | 970,000,000    | 1,44,00,00,000.00 | 1,50,60,00,000.00 |
| Uttrakhand                | 1,707,100,000  | 96,00,00,000.00   | 3,03,00,00,000.00 |
| West Bengal               | 210,000,000    | Nil               | 21,22,00,000.00   |
| Total                     | 26,342,400,000 | 24,049,000,000.00 | 35,235,890,000.00 |