Lok Sabha Question No. 2022 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-02-12
Subject: Decrease in Area of Dense Forest
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Narayana Swamy Abbaiah

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.  2022

TO BE ANSWERED ON 12.02.2021

## Decrease in Area of Dense Forest

## 2022.   SHRI A. NARAYANA SWAMY:

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

- (a) whether  the  area  of  dense  forest  in  the  country  has  decreased  and  if  so,  the  details thereof;
- (b) the area which was earmarked as dense forest during the last five years, Year-wise and State/UT-wise;
- (c) whether  any  State-wise  report  on  environment  degradation  and  water  deficiency  of arid/acute drought prone districts is available and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether the Government has launched any special projects which make afforestation in the arid/ drought prone regions, mandatory and if so, the details thereof; and
- (e) the other measures being taken by the Government to increase the area of dense forest across the country?

## ANSWER

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

- (a)  &  (b)  No  Sir,  as  per  latest  India  State  of  Forest  Report  (ISFR)-2019  prepared  by  Forest Survey of India, Dehradun, the total dense forest of the country is 4,07,750square kilometre (km 2 ).    The  ISFR-2019 shows an increase of 1274 km2 of dense forest cover over that of ISFR 2017. The State-UT wise details of dense forest  as  per  ISFR-2019,  ISFR-2017  and ISFR-2015 is given in Annexure.
- (c) There is no such report available in the ministry.
- (d)  Ministry  is  implementing  various  afforestation  schemes  including  National  Afforestation Programme,  Compensatory  Afforestation Fund  Management  and  Planning  Authority (CAMPA) and Green India Mission under which afforestation projects are carried out on degraded forest/non-forest land which includes arid land as well as area which are prone to drought.
- (e)  AR  (Artificial  Regeneration)  and  ANR  (Assisted  Natural  Regeneration)  are  taken  up  for enhancing the growing stock of the forest. Further, the Working Plan prescriptions covering various silvicultural operations are aimed at improving the health and vigour of the natural forest.

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Annexure

## Annexure referred to reply in part (b) of the LokSabhaUnstarred Question No. 2022 due for answer on 12.02.2021 regarding 'Decrease in Area of Dense Forest'.

Dense Forest Cover in State/UTs as per ISFR 2015 to 2019

(Area in square kilometre)

|   Sl. No. | State/UT          | Geographic al Area   | Dense Forest (Very Dense Forest +Moderatel y DenseFores t) As perISFR 201 5   | Dense Forest (Very DenseForest +Moderately Dense Forest) As perISFR 2017   | Dense Forest (Very DenseForest +Moderately DenseForest) As perISFR 2019   |
|-----------|-------------------|----------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|         1 | Andhra Pradesh    | 160,204              | 14,773                                                                        | 16,008                                                                     | 15,932                                                                    |
|         2 | Arunachal Pradesh | 83,743               | 51,987                                                                        | 51,676                                                                     | 51,652                                                                    |
|         3 | Assam             | 78,438               | 12,681                                                                        | 12,989                                                                     | 13,074                                                                    |
|         4 | Bihar             | 94,163               | 3,610                                                                         | 3,592                                                                      | 3,613                                                                     |
|         5 | Chhattisgarh      | 135,191              | 39,306                                                                        | 39,279                                                                     | 39,266                                                                    |
|         6 | Delhi             | 1,483                | 64.09                                                                         | 62.96                                                                      | 63.14                                                                     |
|         7 | Goa               | 3,702                | 1,116                                                                         | 1,114                                                                      | 1,114                                                                     |
|         8 | Gujarat           | 196,022              | 5,576                                                                         | 5,578                                                                      | 5,470                                                                     |
|         9 | Haryana           | 44,212               | 472                                                                           | 480                                                                        | 479                                                                       |
|        10 | Himachal Pradesh  | 55,673               | 9,612                                                                         | 9,815                                                                      | 10,239                                                                    |
|        11 | Jammu & Kashmir*  | 222,236              | 12,876                                                                        | 12,654                                                                     | 12,893                                                                    |
|        12 | Jharkhand         | 79,714               | 12,293                                                                        | 12,284                                                                     | 12,290                                                                    |
|        13 | Karnataka         | 191,791              | 21,960                                                                        | 24,946                                                                     | 25,549                                                                    |
|        14 | Kerala            | 38,863               | 10,857                                                                        | 11,070                                                                     | 11,443                                                                    |
|        15 | Madhya Pradesh    | 308,245              | 41,423                                                                        | 41,134                                                                     | 41,017                                                                    |
|        16 | Maharashtra       | 307,713              | 29,477                                                                        | 29,388                                                                     | 29,293                                                                    |
|        17 | Manipur           | 22,327               | 6,693                                                                         | 7,418                                                                      | 7,291                                                                     |
|        18 | Meghalaya         | 22,429               | 9,972                                                                         | 9,839                                                                      | 9,756                                                                     |
|        19 | Mizoram           | 21,081               | 5,935                                                                         | 5,992                                                                      | 5,958                                                                     |
|        20 | Nagaland          | 16,579               | 5,974                                                                         | 5,866                                                                      | 5,807                                                                     |
|        21 | Odisha            | 155,707              | 28,455                                                                        | 28,337                                                                     | 28,522                                                                    |
|        22 | Punjab            | 50,362               | 733                                                                           | 814                                                                        | 809                                                                       |
|        23 | Rajasthan         | 342,239              | 4,491                                                                         | 4,418                                                                      | 4,420                                                                     |
|        24 | Sikkim            | 7,096                | 2,656                                                                         | 2,656                                                                      | 2,654                                                                     |
|        25 | Tamil Nadu        | 130,058              | 13,477                                                                        | 14,651                                                                     | 14,635                                                                    |
|        26 | Telangana         | 114,865              | 11,805                                                                        | 10,334                                                                     | 10,395                                                                    |
|        27 | Tripura           | 10,486               | 4,779                                                                         | 5,902                                                                      | 5,890                                                                     |
|        28 | Uttar Pradesh     | 240,928              | 6,214                                                                         | 6,686                                                                      | 6,697                                                                     |
|        29 | Uttarakhand       | 53,483               | 18,466                                                                        | 17,853                                                                     | 17,852                                                                    |

| 30.   | West Bengal         | 88,752    | 7,119    | 7,141    | 7,179    |
|-------|---------------------|-----------|----------|----------|----------|
| 31.   | A&N Islands         | 8,249     | 6,371    | 6,362    | 6,362    |
| 32.   | Chandigarh          | 114       | 15.28    | 15.18    | 15.60    |
| 33.   | Dadra &Nagar Haveli | 491       | 80       | 80       | 80       |
| 34.   | Daman &Diu          | 112       | 7.22     | 7.22     | 7.09     |
| 35.   | Lakshadweep         | 32        | 17.22    | 17.04    | 16.09    |
| 36.   | Puducherry          | 480       | 28.78    | 17.60    | 17.66    |
|       | Grand Total         | 3,287,263 | 4,01,372 | 4,06,476 | 4,07,750 |