Lok Sabha Question No. 1991 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-11-29
Subject: Carbon Sinks
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Pinaki Misra

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1991

TO BE ANSWERED ON 29.11.2019

## Carbon Sinks

## 1991.   SHRI PINAKI MISRA:

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

- (a) the current capacity of carbon sinks in the country in terms of CO2 equivalent;
- (b) the current rate of afforestation in the country, State-wise;
- (c) whether this rate is commensurate with the target of creating an additional carbon sink of 2.5  to  3  billion  tonnes  of  CO2  equivalent  through  additional  forest  and  tree  cover  by 2030, as mentioned in the Intended Nationally Determined Contributions of India;
- (d) if so, the details thereof; and
- (e) if not, the reasons therefor and the proposed plan to achieve the stated targets?

## ANSWER

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

- (a)  As per India's second Biennial Update Report submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in December 2018, the sink action of India's Land-Use, LandUse Change and Forestry sector in 2014 was 301 million tonne CO2 equivalent.
- (b)  The data on State-wise area covered under plantation (public and forest lands) published by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation is given in the table below:

Table : State wise afforestation trends in India 1

| Sl.   | State/UT                 | Afforestation (in Sq.Km)   | Afforestation (in Sq.Km)   | Afforestation (in Sq.Km)   | Afforestation (in Sq.Km)   | Afforestation (in Sq.Km)   | Afforestation (in Sq.Km)   |
|-------|--------------------------|----------------------------|----------------------------|----------------------------|----------------------------|----------------------------|----------------------------|
| No.   | Name                     | 2012- 2013                 | 2013- 2014                 | 2014- 2015                 | 2015- 2016                 | 2016- 2017                 | 2017- 2018                 |
| 1     | Andhra Pradesh           | 4,072.52                   | 3,729.62                   | 2,085.91                   | 1,336.18                   | 2,746.35                   | 2,294.09                   |
| 2     | Arunachal Pradesh        | 3.78                       | 2.13                       | 0.42                       | 0.08                       | -                          | -                          |
| 3     | Assam                    | 86.42                      | -                          | -                          | -                          | -                          | -                          |
| 4     | Bihar                    | 303.30                     | 692.24                     | 929.56                     | 414.19                     | 432.79                     | 351.14                     |
| 5     | Chhattisgarh             | 837.89                     | 605.81                     | 862.11                     | 1,335.31                   | 986.97                     | 260.37                     |
| 6     | Delhi                    | 14.09                      | 8.48                       | 14.68                      | 14.98                      | 12.99                      | -                          |
| 7     | Goa                      | 4.71                       | 1.54                       | 3.46                       | 0.21                       | 0.38                       | 0.15                       |
| 8     | Gujarat                  | 1,684.70                   | 1,392.83                   | 1,911.18                   | 1,508.22                   | 1,687.33                   | 1,771.48                   |
| 9     | Haryana                  | 680.26                     | 571.97                     | 357.98                     | 306.43                     | 254.74                     | 170.00                     |
| 10    | Himachal Pradesh         | 289.02                     | 255.95                     | 207.28                     | 114.49                     | 100.52                     | 92.00                      |
| 11    | Jammu &Kashmir           | 139.88                     | 87.04                      | 84.54                      | 108.63                     | 73.07                      | 113.71                     |
| 12    | Jharkhand                | 107.46                     | 34.50                      | 72.96                      | -                          | 210.05                     | 227.29                     |
| 13    | Karnataka                | 803.85                     | 829.25                     | 528.05                     | 690.93                     | 616.86                     | 621.08                     |
| 14    | Kerala                   | 101.54                     | 38.91                      | 37.00                      | 11.17                      | 466.95                     | 19.23                      |
| 15    | Madhya Pradesh           | 1,195.80                   | 1,351.99                   | 74.99                      | 79.94                      | 991.97                     | -                          |
| 16    | Maharashtra              | 1,889.68                   | 2,137.50                   | 914.13                     | 557.93                     | 421.00                     | 373.93                     |
| 17    | Manipur                  | 145.95                     | 179.16                     | 115.47                     | 28.55                      | 122.47                     | 64.42                      |
| 18    | Meghalaya                | 48.52                      | 163.30                     | 19.91                      | 31.86                      | -                          | 27.43                      |
| 19    | Mizoram                  | 40.71                      | 52.53                      | -                          | -                          | 40.50                      | 40.20                      |
| 20    | Nagaland                 | 56.81                      | 101.40                     | -                          | -                          | -                          | -                          |
| 21    | Odisha                   | 1,072.87                   | 1,175.35                   | 1,988.91                   | 1,708.08                   | 4,014.52                   | 3,823.64                   |
| 22    | Puducherry               | 0.96                       | 0.41                       | 0.75                       | 0.86                       | 2.50                       | 0.63                       |
| 23    | Punjab                   | 95.69                      | 138.16                     | 27.69                      | 29.34                      | 54.69                      | 68.45                      |
| 24    | Rajasthan                | 571.03                     | 677.22                     | 704.23                     | 708.93                     | 668.15                     | 438.73                     |
| 25    | Sikkim                   | 90.19                      | 48.05                      | 40.95                      | 13.25                      | 33.76                      | 3.65                       |
| 26    | Tamil Nadu               | 748.44                     | 702.35                     | 702.35                     | 451.29                     | 397.90                     | 331.47                     |
| 27    | Telangana                | -                          | -                          | 804.46                     | 2,365.98                   | 4,380.59                   | 4,896.73                   |
| 28    | Tripura                  | 204.51                     | 162.80                     | 164.03                     | 23.39                      | 40.70                      | 48.58                      |
| 29    | Uttarakhand              | 220.24                     | 212.42                     | 172.68                     | 178.46                     | 182.51                     | 213.97                     |
| 30    | Uttar Pradesh            | 670.57                     | 783.39                     | 579.07                     | 1,658.67                   | 921.28                     | 515.13                     |
| 31    | West Bengal              | 93.62                      | 39.10                      | 63.96                      | 121.69                     | 27.22                      | 106.53                     |
| 32    | Andaman & Nicobar Island | 11.16                      | 11.28                      | 11.84                      | 13.00                      | 11.25                      | 7.13                       |
| 33    | Chandigarh               | 2.19                       | 1.75                       | 1.26                       | 1.67                       | 1.78                       | 1.76                       |
| 34    | Dadra &Nagar Haveli      | 2.00                       | 2.00                       | 2.20                       | 2.25                       | 2.20                       | 2.00                       |
| 35    | Daman &Diu               | 0.08                       | -                          | 0.11                       | -                          | 0.10                       | 0.15                       |
| 36    | Lakshadweep              | 0.22                       | 0.28                       | -                          | -                          | -                          | -                          |
|       | Grand Total              | 16,290.66                  | 16,190.71                  | 13,484.12                  | 13,815.96                  | 19,904.09                  | 16,885.07                  |

1 http://www.mospi.gov.in/sites/default/files/reports\_and\_publication/statistical\_publication/EnviStats/Component%206.pdf

Further,  National  Mission  for  a  Green  India  is  one  of  the  eight  Missions  under  the National Action Plan on Climate Change. It aims at protecting, restoring and enhancing India's forest  cover  and  responding  to  climate  change.  The  implementation  of  Green  India  Mission started in the year 2015-16. A sum of Rs. 237.07 crore has so far been released under the Green India Mission for undertaking afforestation activities over an area of 108313 ha. Convergence Guidelines of  Green  India  Mission  with  Mahatma  Gandhi  National  Rural  Employment Guarantee  Scheme  (MGNREGS)  and  Compensatory  Afforestation  Fund  Management  and Planning Authority (CAMPA) were issued in March and May, 2015 respectively.

Furthermore, the National Afforestation and Eco-development Board (NAEB), Ministry of  Environment,  Forest  and  Climate  Change  implements  a  Centrally  Sponsored  Scheme 'National Afforestation Programme (NAP)' for regeneration of degraded forests and adjoining areas through people's participation.

(c)  to  (e)  Various  programmes  and  activities  of  the  Central  Government,  State  Governments, Public Sector Undertakings, private sector and  civil society organizations contribute to enhancement  of  forest  and  tree  cover  and  enable  the  government  to  meet  India's  Nationally Determined Contributions goal of creating an additional carbon sink of 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent through additional forest and tree cover by 2030.

Besides, the amount deposited in the state funds under Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act,  2016  is  also  to  be  utilized  by  the  State  Governments  as  per  the  provisions  of  the Compensatory Afforestation Funds Rules, 2018. The permissible activities include compensatory afforestation, catchment area treatment, integrated wildlife management,  assisted natural regeneration, artificial regeneration etc. This fund is treated as additionality to the regular state budgets  and  compensatory  levies  that  are  collected  against  approvals  under  section  2  of  the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980.

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