Lok Sabha Question No. 2339 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-04
Subject: Development of Forest Cover
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Dr. Nishikant Dubey, Shri K Gopinath

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.  2339

TO BE ANSWERED ON 04.08.2025

## Development of Forest Cover

## 2339.   DR. NISHIKANT DUBEY: SHRI K GOPINATH:

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

- (a) the details of the forest cover in the country, State-wise including Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand;
- (b) the details of forest cover increased/decreased during the last three years along with the reasons therefor, State/ UT-wise including Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand;
- (c) the measures taken by the Government for the protection of forest cover in the country including said States;
- (d) whether there is any monitoring mechanism to oversee the changes in forest cover in the said States and if so, the details thereof;
- (e) the details of the Schemes implemented by the Government during the last three years to increase forest cover and develop new forest areas in various cities of the country, State/UT-wise including Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand; and
- (f) whether the Government has any Scheme to increase forest coverage on the basis of their utility and if so, the details thereof, State/UT-wise particularly in Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand?

## ANSWER

MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE (SHRI KIRTI VARDHAN SINGH)

- (a) & (b)    Forest  Survey  of  India  (FSI),  Dehradun,  an  organization  under  the  Ministry  of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, carries out the assessment of forest and tree cover of the country biennially and the findings are published in the India State of  Forest  Report  (ISFR).  The  forest  cover  assessment  is  a  wall-to-wall  mapping exercise based on remote sensing supported by intensive ground verification and field data from the National Forest Inventory.

As per ISFR 2023, the forest cover of the country is 7,15,342.61 square kilometer which is 21.76% of the total geographical area of the country. In the last four years, the forest cover has increased from 7,12,249.00 square kilometer in ISFR 2019 to 7,15,342.61 square kilometer in ISFR 2023. Between ISFR 2019 and ISFR 2023, the country's forest  cover has  increased  by  3,093.61  square  kilometers,  that  includes increase of 86.22 square kilometers in Tamil Nadu and 154.78 square kilometers in Jharkhand.

The increase  in  country's  forest  cover  is  attributed  to  the  factors  such  as  natural vegetation  growth  due  to  conservation  efforts,  afforestation  initiatives,  improved protection in forest and plantation areas, increase in trees outside forest areas, and the regeneration of land under shifting cultivation. The State/UT-wise forest cover including Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand is given in Annexure I.

- (c) to (f) The protection, conservation and management of forest is primarily the responsibility of the States and UTs. There are legal frameworks for the protection and management of forest of the country which include, the Indian Forest Act, 1927; the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980; the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 and the State Forest Acts and Rules, etc. Further, the Ministry issues advisories to States and UTs to protect forests. To monitor changes in forest and tree cover, FSI carries out biennial assessment across the country using satellite data combined with ground truthing.

Further, Nagar Van Yojana (NVY) envisages developing 600 Nagar Van and 400 Nagar Vatika in the country including Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand between the period of 2020-21 to 2026-27 with an objective to enhance the green cover in and around various cities. During the last three years, the Ministry has approved a total of 385 projects under the Nagar Van Yojana across 22 States and UTs, including Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand. The State/UT-wise details of projects approved under Nagar Van Yojana in the last three years are given in Annexure II.

The Ministry also provides technical and financial support to the States and UTs for protection, conservation and management of the forests in the country. This includes various schemes and programmes such as National Mission for a Green India (GIM), Forest Fire Prevention and Management Scheme (FPM), Integrated Development of Wildlife  Habitats  and  Mangrove  Initiative  for  Shoreline  Habitats  and  Tangible Incomes (MISHTI). Afforestation is also carried out by the States and UTs under the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA).

The above schemes and programmes are for all States and UTs, and approvals under the schemes are granted based on the Annual Plans of Operation submitted by the respective States/UTs. However, MISHTI programme is for restoration of degraded mangroves across coastal States and UTs.

In addition to above, a plantation campaign ' एक पेड़ माँ क े नाम #Plant4Mother' has been  launched  on  the  occasion  of  World  Environment  Day  2024  to  undertake plantation  activities  across  the  country.    This  campaign  follows  the  'Whole  of Government' and 'Whole of Society' approach with participation of all stakeholders for increasing the green cover in the country. The campaign has contributed large scale plantation aiding the enhancement of green cover in the country.

******

Annexure-I

Annexure referred to in reply of (a) to (b) of Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 2339 due for answer on 04.08.2025 regarding 'Development of Forest Cover' asked by Dr. Nishikant Dubey and Shri K Gopinath.

## State/UT wise details of Forest Cover in ISFR 2019 and ISFR 2023 (In square

kilometer)

| S.No.   | State/UT            | Forest Cover (ISFR 2019)   | Forest Cover (ISFR 2023)   | Change in Forest Cover   |
|---------|---------------------|----------------------------|----------------------------|--------------------------|
| 1       | Andhra Pradesh      | 29,137.00                  | 30,084.96                  | 947.96                   |
| 2       | Arunachal Pradesh   | 66,688.00                  | 65,881.57                  | -806.43                  |
| 3       | Assam               | 28,327.00                  | 28,313.555                 | -13.45                   |
| 4       | Bihar               | 7,306.00                   | 7,532.45                   | 226.45                   |
| 5       | Chhattisgarh        | 55,611.00                  | 55,811.75                  | 200.75                   |
| 6       | Delhi               | 195.44                     | 195.28                     | -0.16                    |
| 7       | Goa                 | 2,237.00                   | 2,265.72                   | 28.72                    |
| 8       | Gujarat             | 14,857.00                  | 15,016.64                  | 159.64                   |
| 9       | Haryana             | 1,602.00                   | 1,614.26                   | 12.26                    |
| 10      | Himachal Pradesh    | 15,434.00                  | 15,580.35                  | 146.35                   |
| 11      | Jharkhand           | 23,611.00                  | 23,765.78                  | 154.78                   |
| 12      | Karnataka           | 38,575.00                  | 39,254.27                  | 679.27                   |
| 13      | Kerala              | 21,144.00                  | 22,059.36                  | 915.36                   |
| 14      | Madhya Pradesh      | 77,482.00                  | 77,073.44                  | -408.56                  |
| 15      | Maharashtra         | 50,778.00                  | 50,858.53                  | 80.53                    |
| 16      | Manipur             | 16,847.00                  | 16,585.46                  | -261.54                  |
| 17      | Meghalaya           | 17,119.00                  | 16,966.84                  | -152.16                  |
| 18      | Mizoram             | 18,006.00                  | 17,990.46                  | -15.54                   |
| 19      | Nagaland            | 12,486.00                  | 12,222.47                  | -263.53                  |
| 20      | Odisha              | 51,619.00                  | 52,433.56                  | 814.56                   |
| 21      | Punjab              | 1,849.00                   | 1,846.09                   | -2.91                    |
| 22      | Rajasthan           | 16,630.00                  | 16,548.21                  | -81.79                   |
| 23      | Sikkim              | 3,342.00                   | 3,358.40                   | 16.40                    |
| 24      | Tamil Nadu          | 26,364.00                  | 26,450.22                  | 86.22                    |
| 25      | Telangana           | 20,582.00                  | 21,179.04                  | 597.04                   |
| 26      | Tripura             | 7,726.00                   | 7,584.77                   | -141.23                  |
| 27      | Uttar Pradesh       | 14,806.00                  | 15,045.80                  | 239.80                   |
| 28      | Uttarakhand         | 24,303.00                  | 24,303.83                  | 0.83                     |
| 29      | West Bengal         | 16,902.00                  | 16,832.33                  | -69.67                   |
| 30      | A&NIslands          | 6,743.00                   | 6,732.92                   | -10.08                   |
| 31      | Chandigarh          | 22.03                      | 25                         | 2.97                     |
| 32      | Dadra &Nagar Haveli | 207                        | 225.62                     | 18.62                    |
| 32      | Daman& Diu          | 20.49                      |                            | -20.49                   |
| 33      | Jammu &Kashmir      | 21,122.00                  | 21,346.39                  | 224.39                   |
| 34      | Ladakh              | 2,490.00                   | 2,285.92                   | -204.08                  |
| 35      | Lakshadweep         | 27.1                       | 27.06                      | -0.04                    |
| 36      | Puducherry          | 52.41                      | 44.31                      | -8.10                    |
|         | Grand Total         | 7,12,249.00                | 7,15,342.61                | 3,093.61                 |

Annexure-II Annexure referred to in reply of (c) to (f) of Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 2339 due for answer on 04.08.2025 regarding 'Development of Forest Cover' asked by Dr. Nishikant Dubey and Shri K Gopinath.

## State/UT-wise projects approved under Nagar Van Yojana in the last three years

| S.No.   | State/UT          |   Year 2022-23 |   Year 2023-24 |   Year 2024-25 |   Total |
|---------|-------------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|---------|
| 1       | Andhra Pradesh    |              3 |             45 |             11 |      59 |
| 2       | Arunachal Pradesh |              1 |              0 |              0 |       1 |
| 3       | Bihar             |              4 |              0 |              0 |       4 |
| 4       | Chandigarh        |              1 |              0 |              0 |       1 |
| 5       | Gujarat           |              6 |              0 |              1 |       7 |
| 6       | Himachal Pradesh  |              4 |              0 |              0 |       4 |
| 7       | Jammu &Kashmir    |             15 |              0 |             23 |      38 |
| 8       | Jharkhand         |             26 |              0 |              0 |      26 |
| 9       | Karnataka         |              0 |              4 |             19 |      23 |
| 10      | Madhya Pradesh    |             16 |              0 |             39 |      55 |
| 11      | Maharashtra       |              3 |              0 |              0 |       3 |
| 12      | Meghalaya         |              2 |              0 |              0 |       2 |
| 13      | Mizoram           |             14 |              0 |              0 |      14 |
| 14      | Nagaland          |              0 |             24 |              0 |      24 |
| 15      | Punjab            |              0 |             10 |              0 |      10 |
| 16      | Rajasthan         |              8 |              1 |              9 |      18 |
| 17      | Sikkim            |              5 |              0 |              4 |       9 |
| 18      | Tamil Nadu        |              5 |              0 |              0 |       5 |
| 19      | Telangana         |             46 |              0 |             14 |      60 |
| 20      | Uttar Pradesh     |              1 |              0 |              7 |       8 |
| 21      | Uttarakhand       |              2 |              0 |              0 |       2 |
| 22      | West Bengal       |              2 |             10 |              0 |      12 |
|         | Total             |            164 |             94 |            127 |     385 |