Lok Sabha Question No. 1432 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2015-12-08
Subject: Forest Areas
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: PRAHLAD SINGH PATEL

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTIO N NO.  1432

TO BE ANSWERED ON 08.12.2015

## Forest Areas

## 1432. SHRI PRAHLAD SINGH PATEL:

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

- (a) the salient features of the National Afforestation Programme (NAP) as well as the National Mission for a Green India;
- (b) whether the Government is aware that forest areas in the country are diminishing due to encroachment  and  human  activities  and  if  so,  the  estimated  loss  of  forest  areas  in  the country, State-wise;
- (c) whether the Government is considering to undertake the NAP programme in collaboration with the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) for generating rural employment opportunities;
- (d) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor;
- (e) whether the Government proposes to have a digital mapping of forest areas/cover of the country and physical numbering/marking of trees where encroachment and deforestation usually takes place and if not, the reasons therefor;
- (f) the  estimated  expenditure  for  the  Green  India  Mission  annually  along  with  the  funds allocated for each State/UT and projected reduction/neutralisation of Green House Gases (GHGs) through forestation across the country; and
- (g) the other steps taken by the Government to increase the forest areas/cover in the country?

## ANSWER

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

(SHRI PRAKASH JAVADEKAR)

(a) The Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change (MoEF&CC)  is implementing two major Centrally Sponsored Schemes(CSSs) on afforestation, namely National Afforestation  Programme  (NAP)  Scheme  and  the  Green  India  Mission  (GIM)  which  are implemented  in  participatory  mode  under  Joint  Forest  Management  (JFM)  approach.    Under NAP, an area of over 2 million hectares has been sanctioned for afforestation since its inception in  the  year  2000.    GIM  aims  to  increase  forest  &  tree  cover  on  5  million  hectare  area  and  to improve eco-system services & also quality of forest cover on another 5 million hectare area by the end of 13 th Plan period.

- (b) The Forest Survey of India (FSI), Dehradun  assesses the forest cover of the country at  the  interval  of  two  years.    As  per  India  State  of  Forest  Report  (ISFR)  2013,  there  is  a  net increase  of  5871  sq  km.  in  the  forest  cover  as  compared  to  the  previous  assessment  of  2011, which can be attributed to afforestation, conservation measures, management interventions etc. The State-wise details of forest cover are given in Annexure-I.
- (c) & (d) NAP and GIM have implementation linkages with MGNREGS at the district level. Under MGNREGS also, afforestation in degraded forest lands in the States is undertaken.  As per  the  information  available,  about  45,000  hectares  of  such  afforestation  has  been  taken  up during the last three years which has also contributed in generating rural wage employment for the local people.
- (e) The  MoEF&CC  is  alive  to  the  significance  of  digital  mapping  of  forest  areas  in controlling  encroachments & illicit tree cutting and has taken up this issue with the State Forest Departments to complete the exercise on priority.   13 major States have completed digitization of forest boundaries and provided the data to FSI, Dehradun for forest cover mapping.
- (f) GIM envisages an annual additional carbon dioxide sequestration to the tune of 55 to 60  million  tonnes  upto  2020.      The  State-wise  details  for  release  of  funds  are  given  at Annexure-II.
- (g) Afforestation being a cross-sectoral programme, is also taken up under various other Centrally  Sponsored  Schemes  (CSSs)  such  as  Integrated  Watershed  Management  Programme (IWMP), National Bamboo Mission, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) etc. and also under different plan/non-plan schemes of the States.

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## Annexure I

## Annexure referred to in reply of part (b) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No.1432  regarding ' Forest areas ' raised by Shri Prahlad Singh Patel due for reply on 08.12.2015. Forest cover in States/UTs in India as per ISFR,2013

(Area in sq km)

| States/UTs          | Total Forest Cover as per ISFR 2013   | Change in Forest Cover wrt ISFR 2011   |
|---------------------|---------------------------------------|----------------------------------------|
| (1)                 | (6)                                   | (8)                                    |
| Andhra Pradesh      | 46116                                 | -273                                   |
| Arunachal Pradesh   | 67321                                 | -89                                    |
| Assam               | 27671                                 | -2                                     |
| Bihar               | 7291                                  | 446                                    |
| Chhattisgarh        | 55621                                 | -53                                    |
| Delhi               | 179.81                                | 3.61                                   |
| Goa                 | 2219                                  | 0                                      |
| Gujarat             | 14653                                 | 34                                     |
| Haryana             | 1586                                  | -22                                    |
| Himachal Pradesh    | 14683                                 | 4                                      |
| Jammu &Kashmir      | 22538                                 | -1                                     |
| Jharkhand           | 23473                                 | 496                                    |
| Karnataka           | 36132                                 | -62                                    |
| Kerala              | 17922                                 | 622                                    |
| Madhya Pradesh      | 77522                                 | -178                                   |
| Maharashtra         | 50632                                 | -14                                    |
| Manipur             | 16990                                 | -100                                   |
| Meghalaya           | 17288                                 | 13                                     |
| Mizoram             | 19054                                 | -63                                    |
| Nagaland            | 13044                                 | -274                                   |
| Odisha              | 50347                                 | 1444                                   |
| Punjab              | 1772                                  | 8                                      |
| Rajasthan           | 16086                                 | -1                                     |
| Sikkim              | 3358                                  | -1                                     |
| Tamil Nadu          | 23844                                 | 219                                    |
| Tripura             | 7866                                  | -111                                   |
| Uttar Pradesh       | 14349                                 | 11                                     |
| Uttarakhand         | 24508                                 | 12                                     |
| West Bengal         | 16805                                 | 3810                                   |
| A&NIslands          | 6711                                  | -13                                    |
| Chandigarh          | 17.26                                 | 0.26                                   |
| Dadra &Nagar Haveli | 213                                   | 2                                      |
| Daman &Diu          | 9.27                                  | 3.27                                   |
| Lakshadweep         | 27.06                                 | 0.06                                   |
| Puducherry          | 50.06                                 | 0.06                                   |
| Grand Total         | 697898                                | 5871                                   |

## Annexure II

## Annexure referred to in reply of part (f) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No.1432  regarding ' Forest area ' raised by Shri Prahlad Singh Patel due for reply on 08.12.2015.

## Statement showing State wise release of fund under GIM.

(Rs. In lakhs)

| Sl. No.   | State/ UT         | Amount Released   | Amount Released   | Amount Released   | Amount Released   |
|-----------|-------------------|-------------------|-------------------|-------------------|-------------------|
| Sl. No.   | State/ UT         | 2011-12           | 2012-13           | 2013-14           | Total Amount      |
| 1         | Andhra Pradesh    | 89.53             | Nil               | 0                 | 89.53             |
| 2         | Arunachal Pradesh | 0                 |                   | 127.2             | 127.2             |
| 3         | Assam             | 130               |                   | 0                 | 130               |
| 4         | Bihar             | 0                 |                   | 224.85            | 224.85            |
| 5         | Chhattisgarh      | 972               |                   | 0                 | 972               |
| 6         | Gujarat           | 133.8             |                   | 0                 | 133.8             |
| 7         | Haryana           | 357               |                   | 0                 | 357               |
| 8         | Himachal Pradesh  | 126.5             |                   | 0                 | 126.5             |
| 9         | Jammu and Kashmir | 64                |                   | 0                 | 64                |
| 10        | Jharkhand         | 147               |                   | 0                 | 147               |
| 11        | Karnataka         | 267.45            |                   | 0                 | 267.45            |
| 12        | Kerala            | 194.6             |                   | 0                 | 194.6             |
| 13        | Madhya Pradesh    | 823.5             |                   | 0                 | 823.5             |
| 14        | Maharashtra       | 405.77            |                   | 0                 | 405.77            |
| 15        | Manipur           | 40.5              |                   | 0                 | 40.5              |
| 16        | Meghalaya         | 0                 |                   | 89.7              | 89.7              |
| 17        | Mizoram           | 0                 |                   | 223.65            | 223.65            |
| 18        | Nagaland          | 141.5             |                   | 0                 | 141.5             |
| 19        | Orissa            | 107.5             |                   | 0                 | 107.5             |
| 20        | Punjab            | 125.5             |                   | 0                 | 125.5             |
| 21        | Rajasthan         | 275.25            |                   | 0                 | 275.25            |
| 22        | Sikkim            | 0                 |                   | 299.55            | 299.55            |
| 23        | Tamil Nadu        | 72.15             |                   | 0                 | 72.15             |
| 24        | Tripura           | 350.5             |                   | 0                 | 350.5             |
| 25        | Uttarakhand       | 51                |                   | 0                 | 51                |
| 26        | Uttar Pradesh     | 119.5             |                   | 0                 | 119.5             |
| 27        | West Bengal       | 0                 |                   | 300.75            | 300.75            |
|           | Total             | 4994.55           | 0                 | 1265.70           | 6260.25           |

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