State of The Forest Report, 2017

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has released India State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2017. Key facts of the report are:

• Total forest and tree cover in India has increased of over 8,021 sq.km which is one percent increase from 2015
• The total forest cover is 7, 08,273 sq.km which is 21.54% of the geographical area of the country.
• India is ranked 10th in the world, with 24.4% of land area under forest (21.54%) and tree cover
• The mangrove cover in the country is 0.15% of the total geographical area of the country. There has been an increase of 181 sq km as compared to earlier estimates
• In terms of area, Top 5: Madhya Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Maharashtra.
• In terms of percentage of the total geographical area, Top states: Lakshadweep, Mizoram, Andaman & Nicobar Island, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura
• Top five states with increase in forest cover – Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Odisha and Telangana
• Top 5 states with decrease in forest cover – Mizoram, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura, and Meghalaya

India State of Forest Report (ISFR) released biennial basis by Forest Survey of India since 1987. Forest Survey of India (FSI) is an organisation under the Ministry of Environment & Forests; Government of India Its principal mandate is to conduct survey and assessment of forest resources in the country.

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State of the Forest Report, 2017

15^th state of forest report has been released by the Forest Survey of India using Resource-2 satellite data.

What is Forest Cover?

All tree strands with canopy density of over 10% having an extant of more than 1 hectare including bamboo, orchards, coconut, palm etc within recorded forest, private, community or institutional lands.

Classification of forest cover according to canopy density

The forest cover has been classified according to the tree canopy density:

• Very dense forest: All lands with tree canopy density of 70% and above.
• Moderately dense forest: All lands with canopy density of 40% and more and less than 70%.
• Open Forest: All lands with tree canopy density of 10% nad more but less than 40%.
• Scrub: Degraded forests land with canopy density less than 10%.
• Non forests: The land which is not included in any of the above classes.

2017 assessment report

Forest cover

According to current assessment the total forest cover is 7, 08,273 sq km which is 21.54% of the geographical area of the country. There has been an increase of 6778 sq km or 1% in forest covers at the national level.

Very Dense Forest

There is an increase of 9526 sq km of VDF at the national level. Total area comes out to be 98,158 sq km or 2.99% of the total geographical area.

Moderately dense forest

This category has seen a decrease in the forest cover of 4421 sq km and the total area under MDF is 9.38% of the total geographical area.

Open Forest

It has also witnessed an increase of 1674 sq km in the current survey. The total area comes out to be 9.18% of total geographical area.

State wise forest cover

In terms of area, Madhya Pradesh (77,414 sq km) has the largest forest cover followed by Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Maharashtra. In terms of percentage of the total geographical area Lakshadweep stands at the highest with 90.33% ,followed by Mizoram(86.27%),Andaman & Nicobar Island(81.73%),Arunachal Pradesh(79.96%),Manipur(77.69%) and Meghalaya(76.45%),Nagaland(75.33%) and Tripura(73.68%).

Top five states with increase in forest cover

Many states have witnessed an increase in forest cover. Out of which five top states are Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Odisha and Telangana have shown a tremendous increase of 2141 sq km, 1,101 sq km,1043 sq km,885 and 565 sq km respectively. This is largely attributed to the conservation and plantation activities taken at the state level.

Top 5 states with decrease in forest cover

States which has shown a decrease in the forest cover includes Mizoram (531 sq km), Nagaland (450 sq km) and Arunachal Pradesh (190 sq km),Tripura(164 sq km) and Meghalaya(116 sq km).

State and UT having forest cover more than 33%

There are 15 states/UT having above 33% of the geographical area under forest cover.

Forest cover in North East

It comprises of 8 states and is one of the 18 biodiversity hotspots of the world. The region with just 7.98% of the total geographical area of the country accounts for one fourth of the forest cover. Present forest cover in the region is 1,71,306 sq km which is 65.34% of the total geographical area in comparison to the national forest cover of 21.54%.2017 report shows a decrease of forest cover of 630 sq km in the North Eastern region. It is due to the age old practice of shifting cultivation and other biotic pressure

Forest cover in Hill Districts

The Hill districts include all the districts of the state of Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura and Uttrakhand. The total forest cover is 40.22% of the total geographical area. The current assessment shows an increase of 754 sq km of forest cover in all hill districts of the country.

Forest cover in tribal districts

The total forest cover is 37.43% of the total geographical area of these districts. The current assessment shows an increase of 86.89 sq km in all tribal districts of the country.

Mangrove cover

According to current estimates, the mangrove cover in the country is 4921 sq km which is 0.15% of the total geographical area of the country. There has been an increase of 181 sq km as compared to earlier estimates. This is due to the plantation and regeneration.7 out of 12 states has shown an increase in the Mangrove cover out of which Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat are the top three gainers. Interestingly none of the states have shown a negative change in the mangrove cover.

An overview of all the states

Are the report findings satisfactory?

This report, based on satellite imagery, has presented a net positive balance in the form of 24.4% of India’s land area under some form of forest or tree cover. There are two aspects to assess these findings. First, there has been a consistent increase in the baseline cover of India’s forests from 20% at turn of 21^st century. However second, such an estimate may not provide deeper insights into the integrity of the green areas. Lots of trees are grown for commercial purpose and that may not provide equal ecosystem services as provided by undisturbed forests. Thus, the target of covering India with 33% forests should emphasis more on the protection of the native forests along with planting new trees. The question is – What can be done to protect the undisturbed forests? First, the government can utilize the 3 Lakh sq. kilometre of area under open forests (with tree canopy of 10-40%) to protect as well as plant new indigenous trees. Monoculture of trees should be avoided and a mix of various kinds of trees natural to the local environment should be planted. Second, the policies such as open cast mining should not be allowed in such forests.

Examine the report findings in North East India.

The report has calculated a cumulative loss of 1200 km² forests in Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Mizoram. This is a terrible loss because North East of India represents a global biodiversity host and the multiplier effect of loss of forests on biodiversity would cause disastrous changes in local ecology. The loss of biodiversity and forests cannot be compensated with any kind of remediation done in other parts of the country.