Parliament Question:- Effects of Climate Change
Forest Survey of India (FSI), Dehradun, an organization under the Ministry carries out the assessment of forest cover biennially. As per latest India State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2021, the total forest cover of the country is 7,13,789 square kilometer showing an overall increase of 1540 square kilometer of forest cover at the national level as compared to the previous assessment i.e. ISFR 2019. There is no decreasing trend in forest cover of the country. The details of State and Union Territory wise forest cover are given in Annexure. An increase in the forest cover may be attributed to better conservation measures, restoration of degraded forest lands, implementation of afforestation programmes and tree plantation drives. The loss forest cover in some States/UTs may be due to reasons such as natural calamities, anthropogenic pressure, shifting cultivation etc. The Ministry has not conducted any specific study to monitor the effect of climate change on traditional forest dwellers. The National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) provides the overarching framework for all climate actions and comprises missions in specific areas of solar energy, enhanced energy efficiency, sustainable habitat, water, sustaining Himalayan ecosystems, Green India, sustainable agriculture, human health and strategic knowledge for climate change. All these Missions are institutionalized and implemented by their respective nodal Ministries/Departments, including allocation of funds under their relevant schemes as a part of their annual budgetary allocations. To reduce dependence on coal, the government has taken several measures to increase non-fossil fuel based energy sources. As of October 2024, the share of non-fossil fuel-based energy sources in the installed capacity of electricity generation is 46.52 percent. India is, therefore, on track to achieve its target of 50 percent cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources by 2030. India’s climate actions across various sectors are embedded in various programmes and schemes. Further, India engages with the financial mechanism of the UNFCCC and various multilateral institutions to finance its climate action. However, the finance received so far through international sources is very limited. Annexure State and Union Territory wise details of forest cover as per ISFR 2021 (Area in square kilometre) S. No. State/UTs Graphical Area (GA) Total Forest Cover Change in Forest Cover w.r.t ISFR 2019 1 Andhra Pradesh 1,62,968 29,784 647 2 Arunachal Pradesh 83,743 66,431 -257 3 Assam 78,438 28,312 -15 4 Bihar 94,163 7,381 75 5 Chhattisgarh 1,35,192 55,717 106 6 Delhi 1,483 195.00 -0.44 7 Goa 3,702 2,244 7 8 Gujarat 1,96,244 14,926 69 9 Haryana 44,212 1,603 1 10 Himachal Pradesh 55,673 15,443 9 11 Jharkhand 79,716 23,721 110 12 Karnataka 1,91,791 38,730 155 13 Kerala 38,852 21,253 109 14 Madhya Pradesh 3,08,252 77,493 11 15 Maharashtra 3,07,713 50,798 20 16 Manipur 22,327 16,598 -249 17 Meghalaya 22,429 17,046 -73 18 Mizoram 21,081 17,820 -186 19 Nagaland 16,579 12,251 -235 20 Odisha 1,55,707 52,156 537 21 Punjab 50,362 1,847 -2 22 Rajasthan 3,42,239 16,655 25 23 Sikkim 7,096 3,341 -1 24 Tamil Nadu 1,30,060 26,419 55 25 Telangana 1,12,077 21,214 632 26 Tripura 10,486 7,722 -4 27 Uttar Pradesh 2,40,928 14,818 12 28 Uttarakhand 53,483 24,305 2 29 West Bengal 88,752 16,832 -70 30 A & N Islands 8,249 6,744 1 31 Chandigarh 114 22.88 0.85 32 Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu 602 227.75 0.10 33 Jammu & Kashmir Shape file Area (54,624) 2,22,236 21,387 29 34 Ladakh Shape file Area (1,68,055) 2,272 18 35 Lakshadweep 30 27.10 0.00 36 Puducherry 490 53.30 0.89 Total 32,87,469 7,13,789 1,540 This information was given by Union Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Shri Kirti Vardhan Singh in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today. ***** VM/GS Forest Survey of India (FSI), Dehradun, an organization under the Ministry carries out the assessment of forest cover biennially. As per latest India State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2021, the total forest cover of the country is 7,13,789 square kilometer showing an overall increase of 1540 square kilometer of forest cover at the national level as compared to the previous assessment i.e. ISFR 2019. There is no decreasing trend in forest cover of the country. The details of State and Union Territory wise forest cover are given in Annexure. An increase in the forest cover may be attributed to better conservation measures, restoration of degraded forest lands, implementation of afforestation programmes and tree plantation drives. The loss forest cover in some States/UTs may be due to reasons such as natural calamities, anthropogenic pressure, shifting cultivation etc. The Ministry has not conducted any specific study to monitor the effect of climate change on traditional forest dwellers. The National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) provides the overarching framework for all climate actions and comprises missions in specific areas of solar energy, enhanced energy efficiency, sustainable habitat, water, sustaining Himalayan ecosystems, Green India, sustainable agriculture, human health and strategic knowledge for climate change. All these Missions are institutionalized and implemented by their respective nodal Ministries/Departments, including allocation of funds under their relevant schemes as a part of their annual budgetary allocations. To reduce dependence on coal, the government has taken several measures to increase non-fossil fuel based energy sources. As of October 2024, the share of non-fossil fuel-based energy sources in the installed capacity of electricity generation is 46.52 percent. India is, therefore, on track to achieve its target of 50 percent cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources by 2030. India’s climate actions across various sectors are embedded in various programmes and schemes. Further, India engages with the financial mechanism of the UNFCCC and various multilateral institutions to finance its climate action. However, the finance received so far through international sources is very limited. Annexure State and Union Territory wise details of forest cover as per ISFR 2021 (Area in square kilometre) S. No. State/UTs Graphical Area (GA) Total Forest Cover Change in Forest Cover w.r.t ISFR 2019 1 Andhra Pradesh 1,62,968 29,784 647 2 Arunachal Pradesh 83,743 66,431 -257 3 Assam 78,438 28,312 -15 4 Bihar 94,163 7,381 75 5 Chhattisgarh 1,35,192 55,717 106 6 Delhi 1,483 195.00 -0.44 7 Goa 3,702 2,244 7 8 Gujarat 1,96,244 14,926 69 9 Haryana 44,212 1,603 1 10 Himachal Pradesh 55,673 15,443 9 11 Jharkhand 79,716 23,721 110 12 Karnataka 1,91,791 38,730 155 13 Kerala 38,852 21,253 109 14 Madhya Pradesh 3,08,252 77,493 11 15 Maharashtra 3,07,713 50,798 20 16 Manipur 22,327 16,598 -249 17 Meghalaya 22,429 17,046 -73 18 Mizoram 21,081 17,820 -186 19 Nagaland 16,579 12,251 -235 20 Odisha 1,55,707 52,156 537 21 Punjab 50,362 1,847 -2 22 Rajasthan 3,42,239 16,655 25 23 Sikkim 7,096 3,341 -1 24 Tamil Nadu 1,30,060 26,419 55 25 Telangana 1,12,077 21,214 632 26 Tripura 10,486 7,722 -4 27 Uttar Pradesh 2,40,928 14,818 12 28 Uttarakhand 53,483 24,305 2 29 West Bengal 88,752 16,832 -70 30 A & N Islands 8,249 6,744 1 31 Chandigarh 114 22.88 0.85 32 Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu 602 227.75 0.10 33 Jammu & Kashmir Shape file Area (54,624) 2,22,236 21,387 29 34 Ladakh Shape file Area (1,68,055) 2,272 18 35 Lakshadweep 30 27.10 0.00 36 Puducherry 490 53.30 0.89 Total 32,87,469 7,13,789 1,540 This information was given by Union Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Shri Kirti Vardhan Singh in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today. ***** VM/GS