Lok Sabha Question No. 57 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-11-29
Subject: National Afforestation Programme
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Janardan Singh Sigriwal

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTIO N NO. 57

TO BE ANSWERED ON 29.11.2021

## National Afforestation Programme

## 57. SHRI JANARDAN SINGH SIGRIWAL:

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

- (a)    whether  the  Government  has  implemented  National  Afforestation  Programme  in  the country and if so, the details along with the aims and objectives thereof;
- (b)  whether the Government has achieved the annual targeted area of afforestation under the said programme during the last three years;
- (c)   if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor;
- (d)    whether  the  Government  proposes  to  increase  the  allocation  of  funds  to  the  National Afforestation Programme; and
- (e)   if so, the details thereof and the other steps being taken by the Government to increase tree plantation in the country?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE (SHRI ASHWINI KUMAR CHOUBEY)

- (a) Yes Sir. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has implemented a  scheme  National  Afforestation  Programme  (NAP)  scheme  since  2000-01.   The overall  objective  of  NAP  was  ecological  restoration  of  degraded  forests  and  to develop the forest resources with peoples' participation, with focus on improvement in livelihoods of the forest-fringe communities, especially the poor. NAP aimed to support  and  accelerate  the  on-going  process  of  devolving  forest  conservation, protection, management and development functions to the Joint Forest Management Committees (JFMCs) at the village level. The scheme was implemented by three tier institutional setup through the State Forest Development Agency (SFDA) at the state level, Forest Development Agency (FDA) at the forest division level and JFMCs at village level.
- (b) &(c) Yes, Sir. During the last three years an area of 37,110 hectares has been approved for plantation under National Afforestation Programme (NAP) and plantation has been carried out over 50,063  hectare area.
- (d) &(e) The  Ministry  has  approved  merger  of  NAP  into  Green  India  Mission  (GIM)and accordingly  financial  allocation  for  both  the  schemes  is  provided  under  one budgetary head so that the overall efforts are augmented. The budget allocation for the merged scheme has increased from Rs. 160 crore in the year 2020-21 to Rs. 220 crore during the year 2021-22.

The Ministryhas been making constant efforts to increase forest and tree cover and has  taken  several  initiatives  towards  tree  plantation  activities  in  the  country. Afforestation  programmes  under  various  Centrally  Sponsored  Schemes  (CSS)  of the  Ministry  such  as  National  Afforestation  Programme  (NAP)  and  National Mission  for  a  Green  India  (GIM),  are  implemented  with  participatory  approach. The  funds  under  Compensatory  Afforestation  Fund  Management  and  Planning Authority (CAMPA), inter-alia , is used for forest and wildlife management related activities  including  compensatory  afforestation.  The  Ministry  also  promotes  tree plantation  as  people's  movement  through  School  Nursery  Yojanaand  Nagar  Van Yojana.  Tree  plantation/afforestation  being  the  multi-departmental  effort,  also taken upcross sectorillyby various departments of the Centre and State Governments, Non-Government Organizations, civil society, corporate bodies etc.

*****