Lok Sabha Question No. 153 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2015-07-21
Subject: Climate Change
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: N.K. PREMACHANDRAN

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 153

TO BE ANSWERED ON 21.07.2015

## Climate Change

## 153. SHRI N.K. PREMACHANDRAN:

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

- (a) whether the destruction of forest is the main reason for change in climate in the country and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether  the  Government  proposes  to  implement  schemes  for  afforestation  to  check climate change and if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether the Government has implemented/proposes to implement schemes through State Governments for afforestation by providing financial assistance; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE (SHRI PRAKASH JAVADEKAR)

- (a) No Sir. In fact, India has succeeded in stabilizing and enhancing her forest cover. According to India State of Forest Report 2013, the total forest and tree cover of India is 789,164 sq.km, which is 24.01% of the geographical area of the country. There is an increase of 5,871 sq km in  the  forest  cover  of  India  in  comparison  to  2011  assessment.  As  per  India's  Second National Communication, Land Use Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) category was a  net  sink  of  carbon  dioxide  in  India  and  removed  222,567  Gigagrams  of  carbon  dioxide equivalent from the atmosphere in the year 2000. India's successful endeavour in expanding forest cover is widely acknowledged. An effective Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, further strengthened  by  the  National  Forest  Policy,  1988,  a  massive  afforestation  programme, establishment of biosphere reserves, and re-vegetation of degraded lands through Joint Forest Management and people's participation, account for success in forestry based climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation.
- (b)  National Mission for a Green India (GIM) is one of the eight missions under the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) aimed at mitigation of adverse effects of climate change  in  India  with  a  holistic  view  of  increasing  forest/tree  cover,  focusing  on  carbon sequestration  targets  as  well  as  on  multiple  ecosystem  services,  especially,  biodiversity, water, biomass etc.

The Mission aims at both increasing the forest & tree cover by 5 mha,  as  well as increasing the  quality  of  the  existing  forest  cover  in    another  5  mha  through  five  sub-missions  (a) enhancing  quality of forest cover  and improving  ecosystem  services, (b)  ecosystem restoration  and  increase  in  forest  cover,  (c)  enhancing  tree  cover  in  urban  and  peri-urban areas, (d) agro-forestry and  social-forestry, and  (e) restoration  of  wetlands  and  one intervention  i.e.  promoting  use  of  alternative  fuel  energy  (biogas,  solar  devices,  LPG, biomass-based systems, improved stoves) to reduce dependency on fuel wood.

- (c)  and  (d)  The  Mission  will  be  implemented  on  a  decentralized  participatory  approach  with involvement of grass-root level organizations in planning, decision making, implementation and  monitoring  by  the  Gram  Sabha  and  the  Committees  mandated  by  the  Gram  Sabha, including Joint Forest Management Committees (JFMCs) at village level, Forest Development Agency (FDA) at district/division level and State Forest Development Agency at the State/U.T. level. This Centrally Sponsored Scheme was approved in February 2014 for a total cost of Rs 13,000 crore, having a plan outlay of Rs 2,000 crore for the 12th Five Year Plan (FYP) with a spillover of 1 year in the 13th FYP along with Rs 400 crore from 13th Finance  Commission  Grants  towards  State's  Share.  The  Ministry  is  also  implementing  a Centrally Sponsored Scheme 'National Afforestation Programme (NAP)'' for regeneration of  degraded  forests  and  adjoining  areas  through  people's  participation  in  the  country.  The scheme is being implemented through a decentralized mechanism of State Forest Development Agency (SFDA) at State level, Forest Development Agency (FDA) at Forest Division  level  and  JFMCs  at  Village  level.  The  State-wise  details  of  fund  released  under NAP  Scheme is given in Annexure.

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## ANNEXURE to the LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 153 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21.07.2015 ON CLIMATE CHANGE

## National Afforestation and Eco-Development Board National Afforestation Programme: Amount Released (Rs. in crore)

| S. No.   | State                |   2012-13 |   2013-14 | 2014-15   |
|----------|----------------------|-----------|-----------|-----------|
| 1        | Andhra Pradesh       |      2.71 |      3.75 | 4.56      |
| 2        | Bihar                |      3.40 |     12.84 | 7.00      |
| 3        | Chhattisgarh         |     13.33 |     21.38 | 20.00     |
| 4        | Goa                  |      0.00 |      0.00 |           |
| 5        | Gujarat              |     14.30 |     11.68 | 10.50     |
| 6        | Haryana              |      6.41 |     17.94 | 11.00     |
| 7        | Himachal Pradesh     |      3.62 |      2.61 | 0.73      |
| 8        | Jammu &Kashmir       |      3.37 |      8.11 | 3.59      |
| 9        | Jharkhand            |      4.69 |      9.02 | 8.60      |
| 10       | Karnataka            |      6.81 |      9.26 | 21.35     |
| 11       | Kerala               |     11.30 |      6.99 | 2.82      |
| 12       | Madhya Pradesh       |      9.15 |     22.10 | 21.00     |
| 13       | Maharashtra          |     28.87 |     32.33 | 35.00     |
| 14       | Orissa               |      3.38 |      5.36 | 17.92     |
| 15       | Punjab               |      0.76 |      2.00 | 1.87      |
| 16       | Rajasthan            |      4.14 |      2.81 | 3.35      |
| 17       | Tamil Nadu           |      2.78 |      3.21 | 4.25      |
| 18       | Telangana            |      0.00 |      0.00 | 2.03      |
| 19       | Uttar Pradesh        |     15.27 |     20.15 | 12.00     |
| 20       | Uttarakhand          |      6.25 |      6.01 | 2.50      |
| 21       | West Bengal          |      2.57 |      2.96 | 0.78      |
|          | Total (Other States) |    143.11 |    200.49 | 190.85    |
| 22       | Arunachal Pradesh    |      1.66 |      0.00 | 0.15      |
| 23       | Assam                |      1.47 |      2.99 |           |
| 24       | Manipur              |      9.46 |     12.12 | 8.00      |
| 25       | Meghalaya            |      9.10 |      4.50 | 3.61      |
| 26       | Mizoram              |      8.78 |     11.94 | 15.00     |
| 27       | Nagaland             |     10.88 |      9.82 | 11.00     |
| 28       | Sikkim               |      5.42 |      3.77 | 6.00      |
| 29       | Tripura              |      3.50 |     11.99 | 9.17      |
|          | Total (NE States)    |     50.26 |     57.13 | 52.93     |
|          | G. Total             |    193.37 |    257.62 | 243.78    |