Lok Sabha Question No. 3077 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-03-20
Subject: Encroachment of Land
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: S. Gnanathiraviam

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.3077

TO BE ANSWERED ON 20.03.2023

## Encroachment of Land

## 3077. SHRI. GNANATHIRAVIAM S.:

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

- (a) whether  it  is  a  fact  that  forest  land  has  been  encroached  on  large  scale  in  Tamil  Nadu including other parts of the country;
- (b) if so, the details thereof, State/UT-wise; and
- (c) the steps being taken by the Government to remove the encroachment?

## ANSWER

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

(a)and  (b)  The  State/UT-wise  details  of  forest  area  under  encroachment  in  the  country  are enclosed at Annexure-I.

(c)Protection  and  management  of  forests  is  primarily  the  responsibility  of  the  State  and  UT Governments which take appropriate actions to  remove encroachment under the provisions of Indian Forest Act, 1927, Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 and rules made there under, and also under State Specific Acts and Rules.

Further, in order toprevent encroachment, various measures are taken by the State ForestDepartments, includingsurvey and demarcation of forest areas,  construction of boundary pillars, regular patrolling by field staff etc. The State Forest Departments use a range of modern technologysuch  as  wireless  networks,  remote  sensing  and  Geographical  InformationSystem, Global  Positioning  Systems  to  monitor  and  protect  forests.  Local  communities  through  Joint Forest Management are also involved in conservation, protectionand management of forest.

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ANNEXURE-I ANNEXURE  REFERRED  TO  PART  (A)  to  (C)  OF  THE  LOK  SABHA  UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3077 DUE FOR REPLY ON 20.03.2023 REGARDING 'ENCROACHMENT OF LAND'

|   S.No. | Name of the State/UTs   | Area under Encroachment (in ha)   |
|---------|-------------------------|-----------------------------------|
|       1 | Andhra Pradesh          | 25211.11                          |
|       2 | Assam                   | 377532.63                         |
|       3 | Arunachal Pradesh       | 53450.43                          |
|       4 | Bihar                   | 74.01                             |
|       5 | Chhattisgarh            | 7645.84                           |
|       6 | Gujarat                 | 25.24                             |
|       7 | Goa                     | Nil                               |
|       8 | Haryana                 | 1316.44                           |
|       9 | Himachal Pradesh        | 6252.00                           |
|      10 | Jharkhand               | 304.57                            |
|      11 | Jammu &Kashmir          | 16512.39                          |
|      12 | Karnataka               | 407.09                            |
|      13 | Kerala                  | 5024.54                           |
|      14 | Madhya Pradesh          | 54173.28                          |
|      15 | Maharashtra             | 228.81                            |
|      16 | Manipur                 | 2213.82                           |
|      17 | Meghalaya               | 9816.31                           |
|      18 | Mizoram                 | 10852.80                          |
|      19 | Nagaland                | 25.89                             |
|      20 | Odisha                  | 33154.19                          |
|      21 | Punjab                  | 9008.08                           |
|      22 | Rajasthan               | 13939.99                          |
|      23 | Sikkim                  | 2817.21                           |
|      24 | Tripura                 | 3621.80                           |
|      25 | Tamil Nadu              | 15010.71                          |
|      26 | Telangana               | 2004.48                           |
|      27 | Uttar Pradesh           | 27325.17                          |
|      28 | Uttarakhand             | 10649.11                          |
|      29 | West Bengal             | 10214.80                          |
|      30 | A &NIslands             | 3851.24                           |
|      31 | Chandigarh              | 14.00                             |
|      32 | D&NHaveli               | 0.08                              |
|      33 | Daman &Diu              | 87.83                             |
|      34 | Lakshadweep             | Nil                               |
|      35 | Delhi                   | 384.38                            |
|      36 | Puducherry              | Nil                               |
|      37 | Ladakh                  | 01.00                             |