Lok Sabha Question No. 571 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-07-24
Subject: Urban Forests
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Sarmistha Sethi, Hemant Tukaram Godse, Kalaben Mohanbhai Delkar, Gajanan Chandrakant Kirtikar, Santosh Pandey

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTIO N NO. 571

TO BE ANSWERED ON 24.07.2023

## Urban Forests

## 571.    SHRIMATI SARMISTHA SETHI:

SHRI HEMANT TUKARAM GODSE:

SHRIMATI DELKAR KALABEN MOHANBHAI:

SHRI GAJANAN KIRTIKAR:

SHRI SANTOSH PANDEY:

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

- (a) the details of initiative taken by the Government to create urban forests in the country during the last five years;
- (b) the total number and acres of urban forests in the country since 2014 still as on date;
- (c) the salient features of the Nagar Van scheme launched by the Government to increase greenery in urban areas and the details of present status of said scheme in Maharashtra, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu and Chhattisgarh;
- (d) the  total  urban  area  covered  under  the  said  scheme,  State/Union  Territory-wise, including various cities of Maharashtra, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu and Chhattisgarh; and
- (e) the  total  amount  allocated  during  the  last  two  years  and  the  current  year  by  the Government to the State Governments of Maharashtra, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu and Chhattisgarh under the said scheme?

## ANSWER

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

- (a) The  Ministry  of  Environment,  Forest  and  Climate  Change  has  taken  various initiatives  through  programmes  and  schemes  that  encourages  tree  plantation including urban areas in the country. The scheme, Nagar Van Yojana (NVY) has been launched during  the year  2020,  for  creation  of  Nagar  Vans  in  urban  areas, which promotes urban forestry by involving local communities, NGOs, educational institutions, local bodies, etc. Besides, the National Mission for a Green India (GIM), under which, in addition to other  sub-missions,  there  is  a  specific  sub-mission  for  enhancing  tree  cover  in urban and peri-urban areas. Urban forestry is also a permissible activity under the provisions  of  Compensatory  Fund  Act,  2016  and  the  Rules  made  thereunder. departmental,  multi-agency  activity,  are  taken  up  cross-sectorally  under  various programmes/funding  sources  of  other  ministries/  organizations  and  also  through

Forestry/tree plantation activities including urban forestry, being a multiState Plan budgets.

- (b) to(d) The  tree  outside  forest  (ToF)  refers  to  all  trees  growing  outside  recorded  forest areas.  The  patches  of  1  ha  and  above  outside  the  recorded  forest  area  and  Tree Cover, both constitute the ToF. As per India State of Forest Report (ISFR), 2015 published by Forest Survey of India (FSI), MoEFCC the Tree Cover is 92,572 sq. km. As per India State of Forest Report (ISFR), 2021 the Tree Cover is 95,748 sq. km.    The  Forest  Survey  of  India  in  ISFR,  2021  have  done  mapping  for  Forest Cover in Major Mega  Cities i.e. Ahmedabad,  Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai. The total forest cover reported in  these  seven major mega cities is 509.72 sq. km.

Nagar Van Yojana envisages creating a Nagar Van / Nagar Vatika  in each City having Municipal Corporation/Municipal council/Municipality/Urban Local Bodies  (ULBs)  for  providing  wholesome  healthy  living  environment  for  the residents and thus contributing to growth of clean, green, healthy and sustainable cities. The salient features of Nagar Van Yojana are:

- (i) Creating green space and aesthetic environment in an urban set up.
- (ii) Creating awareness about plants and biodiversity and developing environment stewardship.
- (iii) Facilitating in-situ conservation of important flora of the region.

(iv)Contributing to environmental improvement of cities by pollution mitigation, providing cleaner air, noise reduction, water harvesting and reduction of heat islands effect.

- (v) Extending health benefits to residents of the city and
- (vi) Helping cities become climate resilient.

Under  NVY,  so  far,  385  projects  have  been  sanctioned  in  the  country,  since inception  of  the  scheme  in  2020.  The  state-wise  details  of  number  of  projects approved and area sanctioned including Maharashtra and Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Daman-Diu and Chhattisgarh has been given in Annexure.

- (e) The  details  of  funds  released  towards  sanctioned  projects  in  Maharashtra  and Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Daman-Diu and Chhattisgarh during the last two years and current is as under:

(Rs. In Lakhs)

|   Sl. No. | State/UT                                   | Fund Released in 2021-22                             | Fund Released in 2022-23                             | Fund Released in 2023-24                             |
|-----------|--------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------|
|         1 | Chhattisgarh                               | 830.77                                               | 0                                                    | 0                                                    |
|         2 | Maharashtra                                | 156.86                                               | 193.87                                               | 0                                                    |
|         3 | Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and Daman and Diu* | No proposal has been received under Nagar Van Yojana | No proposal has been received under Nagar Van Yojana | No proposal has been received under Nagar Van Yojana |

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Annexure referred to in reply to part (b) to (d) of the Lok Sabha Un-Starred Question No.  571  due  for  reply  on  24.07.2023  by  Shrimati  Sarmistha  Sethi,  Shri  Hemant Tukaram  Godse,  Shrimati  Delkar  Kalaben  Mohanbhai,  Shri  Gajanan  Kirtikar,  Shri Santosh Pandey regarding 'Urban Forests'.

State-wise, details of number of projects and total area sanctioned under Nagar Van Yojana (2020-21 to 2023-24)

| Sl.No.   | State/UT                                   |   Number of projects approved |   Total Area approved (ha) |
|----------|--------------------------------------------|-------------------------------|----------------------------|
| 1        | Andaman &Nicobar                           |                             1 |                     21.15  |
| 2        | Andhra Pradesh                             |                            13 |                    502.95  |
| 3        | Arunachal Pradesh                          |                             1 |                     20     |
| 4        | Assam                                      |                             3 |                     59     |
| 5        | Bihar                                      |                             6 |                    113.02  |
| 6        | Chandigarh                                 |                             1 |                      6.79  |
| 7        | Chhattisgarh                               |                             7 |                    294.63  |
| 8        | Goa                                        |                             1 |                     50     |
| 9        | Gujarat                                    |                            10 |                    178.5   |
| 10       | Haryana                                    |                             5 |                    168.54  |
| 11       | Himachal Pradesh                           |                             6 |                    172.07  |
| 12       | Jammu &Kashmir                             |                            17 |                    218.6   |
| 13       | Jharkhand                                  |                            33 |                    771.67  |
| 14       | Karnataka                                  |                             7 |                    239.71  |
| 15       | Kerala                                     |                            25 |                    379.31  |
| 16       | Madhya Pradesh                             |                            27 |                    942.14  |
| 17       | Maharashtra                                |                             9 |                    184.14  |
| 18       | Manipur                                    |                             1 |                     50     |
| 19       | Meghalaya                                  |                             2 |                     86.7   |
| 20       | Mizoram                                    |                            16 |                    730.8   |
| 21       | Nagaland                                   |                            11 |                    188.3   |
| 22       | Odisha                                     |                            40 |                    720.288 |
| 23       | Punjab                                     |                            16 |                    186.9   |
| 24       | Rajasthan                                  |                            14 |                    485.9   |
| 25       | Sikkim                                     |                             5 |                    139.63  |
| 26       | Tamil Nadu                                 |                            10 |                    435     |
| 27       | Telangana                                  |                            47 |                    472.19  |
| 28       | Tripura                                    |                             4 |                    124.5   |
| 29       | Uttar Pradesh                              |                            26 |                    722     |
| 30       | Uttarakhand                                |                             6 |                    129.27  |
| 31       | West Bengal                                |                            15 |                    117.483 |
| 32       | Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and Daman and Diu* |                             0 |                      0     |
| Total    | Total                                      |                           385 |                   8911.18  |

Note:*No proposal has been received under Nagar Van Yojana.

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