Lok Sabha Question No. 895 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-02-07
Subject: Special Scheme to Check Climate Change
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Kishan Kapoor

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 895

TO BE ANSWERED ON 07.02.2022

## Special Scheme to Check Climate Change

## 895. SHRI KISHAN KAPOOR:

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

- (a) whether the dense forest coverage is decreasing in traditionally dense forest area in Western Himalayan States including Himachal Pradesh and as a result, the effects of climate change are also visible in these States; and
- (b) whether the Government proposes to start any special scheme in the said States to check the adverse effects of climate change and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

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

(a)As per the India State of Forest Report(ISFR) 2021, there is an increase of 24 sq. km. of dense forest in Himachal Pradesh with respect to ISFR 2019 assessment. However, in the other three western  Himalayan  States/Union  Territories,  namely  Uttarakhand,  Jammu  &  Kashmir  and Ladakh, there is adecrease in dense forests of 29 sq. km, 97 sq. km and 10 sq. km respectively. Heavy rainfall can lead to soil erosion, run off and associated impacts.Such impacts are lesser where  there  is  adequate  vegetation  cover.  While  all  efforts  are  undertaken  to  minimize  such risks,  all  such  situations  cannot  be  attributed  to  climate  change.  The  science  of  attribution  of these changes particularly to climate change is far more complex and an evolving subject.

(b)  The  Ministry  of  Environment,  Forest  and  Climate  Change  has  established  the  G.B.  Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment as a focal agency to advance scientific knowledge and  to  evolve  integrated  management  strategies  for  conservation  of  biodiversity  and  natural resources  in  the  Indian  Himalayan  Region  (IHR).  Besides,  the  Himalayan  Forest  Research Institute, a constituent organization  under  the  Indian  Council  of  Forestry  Research  and Education,  is  also  addressing  forestry  research  and  education  in  the  Himalayan  Region.  The Ministry has also launched the National Mission on Himalayan Studies in 2015-16 as a Central Sector Scheme to support the sustenance and enhancement of the ecological, natural, cultural, and  socio-economic  capital  assets  and  values  of  the  IHR.  Government  is  implementing  the National  Action  Plan  on  Climate  Change  (NAPCC)  through  National  Missions  that  address climate  change  mitigation  and  adaptation  across  a  range  of  sectors.  Two  missions  namely,  (i) National Mission for Sustaining Himalayan Ecosystem (NMSHE); and (ii) National Mission on Strategic  Knowledge  for  Climate  Change  (NMSKCC)  under  the  Department  of  Science  & Technology  (DST)  address  the  concerns  of  sustainable  development  in  the  Indian  Himalayan Region. Further, thirty-three States /Union Territories have prepared their State Action Plans on Climate Change (SAPCC) in line with the NAPCC considering the State specific issues relating to climate change.

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