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The State of India’s Environment Report highlights that India's total forest cover has increased by a little more than 0.5% between 2017 and 2021. However, the report also cautions that this seemingly positive development has some caveats.
The report highlights that very dense forests, which are critical for carbon sequestration and absorb maximum carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, occupy just 3% of India's total forest cover. This underscores the need for more focused conservation efforts to protect these forests and prevent their degradation.
The increase in India's forest cover is certainly a positive development. However, as you mentioned, the distribution of the increase among different types of forests is a cause for concern.
State/UTs details of Forest Cover
| S. No | State/UT | Geo-graphical Area (GA) | Total Forest Cover | Scrub |
| 1 | Andhra Pradesh | 1,62,968 | 29,784 | 8,276 |
| 2 | Arunachal Pradesh | 83,743 | 66,431 | 797 |
| 3 | Assam | 78,438 | 28,312 | 228 |
| 4 | Bihar | 94,163 | 7,381 | 236 |
| 5 | Chhattisgarh | 1,35,192 | 55,717 | 615 |
| 6 | Delhi | 1,483 | 195.00 | 0.38 |
| 7 | Goa | 3,702 | 2,244 | 0 |
| 8 | Gujarat | 1,96,244 | 14,926 | 2,828 |
| 9 | Haryana | 44,212 | 1,603 | 159 |
| 10 | Himachal Pradesh | 55,673 | 15,443 | 322 |
| 11 | Jharkhand | 79,716 | 23,721 | 584 |
| 12 | Karnataka | 1,91,791 | 38,730 | 4,611 |
| 13 | Kerala | 38,852 | 21,253 | 30 |
| 14 | Madhya Pradesh | 3,08,252 | 77,493 | 5,457 |
| 15 | Maharashtra | 3,07,713 | 50,798 | 4,247 |
| 16 | Manipur | 22,327 | 16,598 | 1,215 |
| 17 | Meghalaya | 22,429 | 17,046 | 663 |
| 18 | Mizoram | 21,081 | 17,820 | 1 |
| 19 | Nagaland | 16,579 | 12,251 | 824 |
| 20 | Odisha | 1,55,707 | 52,156 | 4,924 |
| 21 | Punjab | 50,362 | 1,847 | 34 |
| 22 | Rajasthan | 3,42,239 | 16,655 | 4,809 |
| 23 | Sikkim | 7,096 | 3,341 | 296 |
| 24 | Tamil Nadu | 1,30,060 | 26,419 | 758 |
| 25 | Telangana | 1,12,077 | 21,214 | 2,911 |
| 26 | Tripura | 10,486 | 7,722 | 33 |
| 27 | Uttar Pradesh | 2,40,928 | 14,818 | 563 |
| 28 | Uttarakhand | 53,483 | 24,305 | 392 |
| 29 | West Bengal | 88,752 | 16,832 | 156 |
| 30 | A & N Islands | 8,249 | 6,744 | 1 |
| 31 | Chandigarh | 114 | 22.88 | 0.38 |
| 32 | Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu |
602 | 227.75 | 4.85 |
| 33 | Jammu & Kashmir |
2,22,236 | 21,387 | 284 |
| 34 | Ladakh | 2,272 | 1.35 | |
| 35 | Lakshadweep | 30 | 27.10 | 0.00 |
| 36 | Puducherry | 490 | 53.30 | 0.00 |
| Total | 32,87,469 | 7,13,789 | 21.71 | |
The fact that most of the increase has occurred in the open forest category, which includes commercial plantations, suggests that the increase may not necessarily represent a gain in biodiversity or ecosystem health.
According to the India State of Forest Report 2023, three southern states (Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Karnataka) and two eastern states (Odisha and Jharkhand) have recorded the highest increase in forest area.
Largest forest in India
Covering a total area of 77, 493 km2, Madhya Pradesh holds the biggest forest area-wise in India. Here's a breakdown of the largest forest cover in India.
The Satpura forest, located in the states of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, holds the title of the largest forest in India. With an area covering 77,493 square kilometers (30,000 sq mi), it stands as the largest contiguous forest in India. A variety of wildlife, including tigers, leopards, elephants, and bears, call the Satpura forest their home.
Several tribal communities also reside here, having traditionally relied on the forest for their livelihood. UNESCO recognizes the Satpura forest as a World Heritage Site. It serves as an important water source for the people of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh contributes to climate regulation and combats soil erosion. Let's discover some other large forests in India:
| Forest Name | Area (sq.km) |
|---|---|
| Sundarbans | 10,000 |
| Nagarhole | 6,183 |
| Kaziranga | 1,030 |
| Kanha | 940 |
| Gir | 1,412 |
| Bhimashankar | 551 |
| Bandipur | 874 |
| Dudhwa | 1,290 |
State with the Largest forest in India
| State | Area of forest cover (in sq. km) | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Madhya Pradesh | 77,493 | Madhya Pradesh has the largest forest cover in the country. |
| Arunachal Pradesh | 66,431 | Arunachal Pradesh has the second-largest forest cover in India. |
| Chhattisgarh | 55,717 | Chhattisgarh ranks third in terms of forest cover in India. |
| Odisha | 52,156 | Odisha has the fourth-largest forest cover in the country. |
| Maharashtra | 50,978 | Maharashtra ranks fifth in India in terms of forest cover |
States with increased forest area
| State | Forest area 21 | Forest area 2019 | Increase (in sq km) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Andhra Pradesh | 29,784 | 29,137 | 647 |
| Telangana | 21,214 | 20,582 | 632 |
| Odisha | 52,156 | 51,619 | 537 |
| Karnataka | 38,730 | 38,575 | 155 |
| Jharkhand | 23,721 | 23,611 | 110 |
It is worth noting that these increases in forest area may not necessarily reflect a gain in natural forest cover, as some of the gains may be due to the establishment of commercial plantations or other forms of land use change.
Therefore, it is important to carefully examine the quality and composition of the forest cover to assess the ecological and conservation benefits of these changes.
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has been running the Nagar Van Yojana (NVY) since 2020. This program aims to create 400 Nagar Vans and 200 Nagar Vatika across the country from 2020 to 2025. The funding for this comes from the National Compensatory Afforestation Fund (CAMPA).
The goal of NVY is to increase green spaces in urban and suburban areas, improve biodiversity, provide ecological benefits, and enhance the quality of life for city residents. So far, the Ministry has approved 270 projects under NVY, costing a total of Rs.238.64 Crore.
Forest land diversion state-wise data
The government passed the Forest Conservation Act in 1980, and since then, they have used a lot of forest land for other purposes. This land is roughly seven times the size of Delhi. They used the most forest land for other purposes in 1990 and 2000.
On August 7, 2023, the government announced in the Lok Sabha that various entities have used a significant amount of forest land for other purposes in the last 15 years. Over the last 5 years, they have primarily used this forest land for roads and mining.
| State/UT | Forest Land Converted for Non-Forest Use (in hectares) |
|---|---|
| Jammu and Kashmir | 450.65 |
| Himachal Pradesh | 2,512.65 |
| Uttarakhand | 3,368.89 |
| Punjab | 2,391.57 |
| Uttar Pradesh | 4,090.64 |
| Sikkim | 124.87 |
| Chandigarh | 0.46 |
| Bihar | 1,852.75 |
| Haryana | 2,161.49 |
| Rajasthan | 2,972.12 |
| Gujarat | 8,064.76 |
| Dadra and Nagar Haveli | 85.05 |
| Delhi | 2.43 |
| Daman and Diu | 18.41 |
| Madhya Pradesh | 19,730.36 |
| Maharashtra | 2,137.89 |
| Goa | 0 |
| Assam | 1,357.17 |
| Meghalaya | 33.97 |
| Mizoram | 603.75 |
| Manipur | 392.89 |
| Tripura | 1,153.65 |
| Jharkhand | 4,416.55 |
| West Bengal | 621.68 |
| Odisha | 13,304.79 |
| Chhattisgarh | 2,802.38 |
| Telangana | 3,706.52 |
| Andhra Pradesh | 1,946.61 |
| Arunachal Pradesh | 7,448.34 |
| Andaman and Nicobar Islands | -100 |
| Total | 90,001.15 (hectares) |
In the last five years, users have applied 43% of all the forest land to roads and mining. Many have also used a significant amount of forest land for power lines, irrigation, defense projects, hydro projects, and railways.
People have also used a lot of forest land for things like canals, hospitals, drinking water, transforming forest villages into other types of villages, industries, fiber optic cables, pipelines, rehabilitation, schools, solar energy, thermal energy, wind energy, and village electrification.
Funds released from 2017-18 to 2022-23 for Green forest
| S. No. | States | 2017-18 | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 |
| 1 | Andhra Pradesh | 0.45 | 2.67 | Nil | Nil | 2.02 | Nil |
| 2 | Arunachal Pradesh | Nil | Nil | Nil | Nil | 13.43 | Nil |
| 3 | Chhattisgarh | 10.95 | 5.36 | 5.04 | 1.66 | 6.12 | Nil |
| 4 | Haryana | Nil | Nil | Nil | Nil | 9.55 | Nil |
| 5 | Himachal Pradesh | Nil | Nil | Nil | 17.09 | Nil | Nil |
| 6 | Jammu & Kashmir | Nil | Nil | Nil | 25.73 | Nil | 6.49 |
| 7 | Karnataka | 0.86 | 1.62 | 2.21 | 2.35 | 4.45 | 2.93 |
| 8 | Kerala | Nil | Nil | 16.32 | Nil | Nil | Nil |
| 9 | Madhya Pradesh | Nil | 24.16 | 30.65 | Nil | 18.29 | 17.93 |
| 10 | Maharashtra | Nil | 10.30 | Nil | Nil | Nil | |
| 11 | Manipur | 6.42 | 4.89 | 4.16 | 6.74 | 9.93 | 5.45 |
| 12 | Mizoram | 20.00 | 22.36 | 17.71 | 2.99 | 29.86 | 36.27 |
| 13 | Odisha | 1.41 | 4.74 | 14.19 | 26.01 | 17.74 | 8.48 |
| 14 | Punjab | 6.22 | 3.19 | 3.32 | 2.7393 | ||
| 15 | Sikkim | Nil | 3.32 | 3.12 | 2.19 | 7.77 | 6.57 |
| 16 | Uttarakhand | Nil | Nil | Nil | 27.89 | 33.99 | 28.40 |
| 17 | West Bengal | Nil | Nil | 9.43 | Nil | Nil | 0.76 |
| Total | 46.30 | 79.43 | 106.01 | 112.65 | 156.46 | 116.01 | |
States use the Compensatory Afforestation Fund (CAMPA) to replace lost forests due to development projects, by the CAF Act 2016 and CAF Rules 2018. Plans are drafted for wildlife conservation, soil preservation, etc., to mitigate the effects of forest land diversion.
Various programs and schemes also carry out afforestation activities. These include the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, the National Bamboo Mission, the Sub-Mission on Agroforestry, and others. These are run by different departments of the State Government/UT Administration, Non-Government Organizations, Civil Society, Corporate bodies, etc. These combined efforts have been successful in preserving and increasing the forest cover in the country.
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