Lok Sabha Question No. 1327 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-12-06
Subject: COP26
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Thalikkottai Rajuthevar Baalu

## 1327. SHRI T.R. BAALU:

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

- (a) whether India has refused to endorse the recently adopted Glasgow Declaration on Climate Change in COP 26, pertaining to the containment of deforestation;
- (b) if so, the considerations on which India has decided to take a stand different from that of  the international community;
- (c) whether  the  Government  has  thought  of  a  crash  program  to  increase  the  Country's forest   cover to 33 per cent of the land area, the target which was fixed about 25 years ago in view of the fact that presently the forest cover remains static at 19 per cent only for several years   now;
- (d) whether the Government also has a plan on hand to create a Carbon Sink comprised of Forests and Plantations to absorb 3 billion tons of carbon dioxide; and
- (e) if so, the details of the plan and by when it is to be commenced?

## ANSWER

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

- (a)&(b) India has not endorsed the Glasgow Leaders Declaration on Forests and Land Use, due to reference to trade as an area in the Declaration.
- (c) As  per  the  National  Forest  Policy,  1988,  the  national  goal  should  be  to  have  a minimum of one-third of the total land area of the country under forest or tree cover.

As  per  the  latest  India  State  of  Forest  Report  (ISFR)-2019  published  by  Forest Survey of India, Dehradun, the total Forest and Tree Cover (FTC) of the country is 8,07,276  Square  Kilometres,  which  is  24.56%  of  the  geographical  area  of  the country. There is an increase of 5,188 Square Kilometresas compared to that of FTC in ISFR-2017, and 13,209Square Kilometresas compared to FTC in ISFR, 2015.

The Forest Cover of the country as per ISFR-2019 is 7,12,249 Square Kilometers which is 21.67% of the geographical area of the country whereas the Forest Cover of the country as per ISFR-1989after the adoption of National Forest Policy, 1988 was6,38,804Square Kilometres constituting 19.43% of the geographical area of the

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION No.1327

TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.12.2021

## COP26

country. There has been an increase of 2.24% in the forest cover of the country since 1989. The trend of Forest Cover in India for the last 5 biennial assessment reported in ISFRs is as under: -

|   Year | Forest Cover (in sq. km)   | Tree Cover (in sq. km)   | Forest & Tree Cover (in sq. km)   |   % of Geographical Area |
|--------|----------------------------|--------------------------|-----------------------------------|--------------------------|
|   2011 | 692,027                    | 90,844                   | 782,871                           |                    23.81 |
|   2013 | 697,898                    | 91,266                   | 789,164                           |                    24.01 |
|   2015 | 701,673                    | 92,572                   | 794,245                           |                    24.16 |
|   2017 | 708,273                    | 93,815                   | 802,088                           |                    24.4  |
|   2019 | 712,249                    | 95,027                   | 807,276                           |                    24.56 |

- (d)& (e) India  has  submitted  its  Nationally  Determined  Contributions  (NDC)  under  Paris Agreement to United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). One of the goals under NDC is to create an additional carbon sink of 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent through additional forest and tree cover by 2030  and  the  Government  of  India  has  taken  several  initiatives  for  fulfilling  its commitment  to  meet  this  target.    Afforestation  and  tree  plantation  activities  are carried  out  by  the  States  and  Union  Territories  (UTs)  with  people's  participation. The  Ministry  of  Environment,  Forest  and  Climate  Change  provides  financial assistance  to  States/UTs  under  various  Centrally  Sponsored  Schemes  including, inter alia , National Afforestation Programme, Development of Wildlife Habitat and Forest  Fire  Prevention  and  Management  Scheme  for  supporting  such  efforts. Compensatory afforestation is also undertaken by the States/UTs for compensating the diverted forest lands.

Further, the Government of India is implementing National Action Plan on Climate Change  (NAPCC),  comprising  of  eight  Missions,  which  provides  an  overarching policy framework for all climate actions in the country. Under NAPCC, the National Mission for a Green India (GIM) aims at protecting, restoring and enhancing India's forest cover and responding to climate change by means of plantation activities in forest  and  non-forest  areas.  GIM was launched in 2015-16 and a total sum of Rs. 492.20 crores has been released under the scheme to fifteen States and one Union Territory  for  undertaking  afforestation  activities  over  an  area  of  1,84,161  hectares including  restoration  of  wetlands  which  contribute  to  achievingIndia'sNationally Determined Contributions (NDC)target.

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