Lok Sabha Question No. 5923 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-30
Subject: National Afforestation Programme
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Shri Rahul Singh Lodhi

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5923

TO BE ANSWERED ON 30.03.2026

## National Afforestation Programme

## 5923. SHRI RAHUL SINGH LODHI:

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

- (a) the current status of implementation of the National Afforestation Programme during the last  three  years  and  the  current  year  along  with  the  details  of  the  area  afforested  and funds utilised thereunder, State/UT-wise particularly in Damoh Lok Sabha Constituency;
- (b) the  manner  in  which  the  said  programme  has  been  converged  with  the  Compensatory Afforestation  Fund  Management  and  Planning  Authority  (CAMPA)  and  the  National Mission for a Green India for the restoration of degraded forest lands;
- (c) the  steps  taken  by  the  Government  to  ensure  community  participation  and  livelihood generation under the said programme; and
- (d) whether any impact assessment has been conducted regarding the survival rate of plants and improvement in forest cover and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND  CLIMATE CHANGE

(SHRI KIRTI VARDHAN SINGH)

- (a) The National Afforestation Programme (NAP) which was implemented for ecological restoration  of  degraded  forest  lands  through  people's  participation,  primarily  through Joint  Forest  Management  Committees  (JFMCs)  and  Forest  Development  Agencies (FDAs) was merged with the National Mission for Green India (NMGI) i.e Green India Mission  (GIM)  in  2018.  Based  on  approved  Annual  Plans  of  Operations,  funds  are released by the Ministry based on availability of budget and progress of works, and are utilized by the States for plantation, soil and moisture conservation, nursery raising and related  activities.  The  details  of  the  area  afforested  and  funds  utilised  under  the programme during the last three years are given in Annexure-I.
- (b) The  objectives  of  the  National  Afforestation  Programme  are  complementary  to  other major afforestation initiatives of the Government such as the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) mechanism and the Green India Mission (GIM). Convergence is ensured at the planning and implementation  stage  by  prioritizing  degraded  forest  lands  for  restoration,  pooling resources  for  plantation  and  protection  activities,  and  avoiding  duplication  of  efforts. While  CAMPA  funds  are  primarily  used  for  compensatory  afforestation  and  related activities, NAP and GIM support ecological restoration, landscape-based afforestation and capacity  building,  thereby  collectively  contributing  to enhancement  of  forest and tree cover.
- (c) Community participation  is  a  key  component  of the  programme.  Afforestation works are  implemented  through  JFMCs  with  active  involvement  of  local  communities  in

planning, plantation, protection and maintenance of forest areas. The programme also supports  livelihood  generation  through  wage  employment  in  plantation  activities, nursery  raising,  soil  and  moisture  conservation  works,  and  sustainable  harvesting  of minor forest produce, thereby providing economic benefits to forest-dependent communities.

- (d) Monitoring and evaluation of plantations undertaken under the programme are carried out  through periodic field inspections  by State  Forest  Departments  and  review mechanisms of the Ministry. Survival of plantations and improvement in forest cover are  assessed  through  monitoring  reports,  third-party  evaluations  and  national-level assessments such as the India State of Forest Report published by the Forest Survey of India. These assessments indicate improvement in forest and tree cover in several parts of the country due to sustained afforestation and conservation efforts.

*****

Annexure referred to  in reply  of  part  (a)  of  the  Lok  Sabha  Unstarred  Question  No.  5923 regarding  'National  afforestation  programme'  raised  by  Shri  Rahul  Singh  Lodhi  due  for reply on 30.03.2026

Funds  allocated/released/utilized  &  creation  of  plantation/eco-restoration  during  the  last three years under GIM (2022-23 to 2024-25)

| Sl. No.           | States            | Total amount Allocated/Released (Rs. In Crores)   | Total funds utilized Utilized (Rs. In Crores)   | Total Creation of plantation/eco- restoration (in ha)   |
|-------------------|-------------------|---------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------|
| 1 Andhra          | Pradesh -         | -                                                 |                                                 | -                                                       |
| 2                 | Arunachal Pradesh | 21.28                                             | 29.96                                           | 5,314                                                   |
| 3                 | Chhattisgarh*     | 0.09                                              | 6.21                                            | -                                                       |
| 4                 | Haryana           | 38.18                                             | 44.51                                           | 1,301                                                   |
| 5 Himachal        | Pradesh           | -                                                 | 10.59                                           | 1,299                                                   |
| 6 Jammu & Kashmir | 10.99             | 19.81                                             |                                                 | 827                                                     |
| 7 Karnataka       |                   | 10.25                                             | 10.21                                           | 397                                                     |
| 8 Kerala*         |                   | -                                                 | 4.37                                            | -                                                       |
| 9 Madhya Pradesh  |                   | 50.16                                             | 33.64                                           | 13,361                                                  |
| 10 Maharashtra*   |                   | -                                                 | 1.78                                            | -                                                       |
| 11 Manipur        |                   | 14.36                                             | 14.36                                           | 2,056                                                   |
| 12 Mizoram*       |                   | 57.40                                             | 57.40                                           | -                                                       |
| 13 Odisha*        |                   | 21.07                                             | 30.87                                           | -                                                       |
| 14 Punjab         |                   | 8.12                                              | 5.33                                            | 2,175                                                   |
| 15                | Sikkim            | 26.32                                             | 26.32                                           | 2,584                                                   |
| 16                | Uttarakhand       | 85.50                                             | 89.43                                           | 5,647                                                   |
| 17                | West Bengal       | 1.52                                              | 0.76                                            | 1,611                                                   |
| 18                | Uttar Pradesh*    | 5.43                                              | 4.22                                            | -                                                       |
|                   | Total             | 350.67                                            | 389.77                                          | 36,572                                                  |

Note: The fund utilized also include the utilization of unspent funds available with the States from release of previous year.

*Amount was allocated to state for taking up the balance of advance work  and maintenance work only. No creation work was provisioned in the APO.

*****