Question : Forest Area

(a) whether as per the India State of Forest Report (ISFR), 2019, the total recorded Forest Area in the country is 7,67,419 square kilometres out of which 4,34,853 square kilometres is Reserve Forest;
(b) if so, the total land reserved for forest land in Bihar, area-wise and district-wise;
(c) whether any assessment has been undertaken by the Government for the enhancement of forest cover in Bihar including Gopalganj district, if so, the details thereof, and if not, the reasons therefor; and
(d) the steps taken by the Government to undertake/promote more plantation drive/activities including fruits plantation in Bihar especially in Gopalganj district?

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE
(SHRI BABUL SUPRIYO)

(a) Yes Sir.

(b) As per India State of Forest Report-2019, the district wise forest cover of Bihar is given in Annexure-I.

(c) Forest Survey of India, Dehradun, an organization under the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, carries out the assessment of forest cover of the country biennially and the findings are published in India State of Forest Report (ISFR). The forest cover assessment is a wall-to-wall mapping exercise based on remote sensing supported by intensive ground verification and field data from National Forest Inventory. ISFR-2019 is the latest report in the series. A comparison of ISFR 2017 with ISFR 2019 shows a decrease of 0.09 sq. km of forest cover from the year 2017 to 2019.

(d)The details of year-wise funds released by Central Government under various schemes to State of Bihar, including Gopalganj, and seedlings planted, as reported by the State, under Twenty Point Programme are given in Annexure-II.

Government of Bihar is implementing Jal Jeevan Haryali Mission under which various afforestation programmes are taken up with the participation of the local people and other stakeholders. Under this Mission 3.95 crore plants have been planted in the State during the year 2020-21, out of which more than 5 lakhs plants have been planted in Gopalganj district.
*****