(a) the year-wise details of budgetary allocations and expenditure on National Afforestation Programme to improve the forest cover from 2014-15 to 2021-22;
(b) whether the National Afforestation Programme has improved the forest cover in India and if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; and
(c) the steps being taken by the Government to achieve the targeted objectives of National Afforestation Programme?
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE
(SHRI ASHWINI KUMAR CHOUBEY)
(a) The year-wise details of budgetary allocations and expenditure of National Afforestation Programme, from 2014-15 to 2021-22, are as under:
(Amount in Rupees in crore)
Year 2014-
2015 2015-
2016 2016-
2017 2017-
2018 2018-2019 2019-2020 2020-
2021 2021-
2022**
Budget Allocated 243.78 100.00 60.00 80.00 176.94* 193.63* 160.00* 220.00*
Expenditure 243.78 94.16 59.35 80.00 176.73* 193.63* 158.04* 200.13*
*Combined allocation and expenditure for National Mission for a Green India (GIM)-National Afforestation Programme(NAP).
** Expenditure as on 24th January, 2022
(b)&(c) National Afforestation Programme(NAP) has been the flagship afforestation scheme of the Ministry, implemented since year 2000 on pan India basis, for afforestation in identified degraded forest areas with people’s participation and decentralised forest governance. National Mission for a Green India (GIM)aims at protecting, restoring and enhancing India’s forest cover through plantation activities in forest and non-forest areasand the activities were started in 2015-16.NAP and GIM, along with other afforestation schemes, have been contributing in restoration of degraded forest areas in the country. This has helped in stabilization and increase in the extent of forest cover, which is evident from the India State of Forest Report (ISFR) published by Forest Survey of India (FSI). The latest India State of Forest Report (ISFR 2021) revealed that the total forest and tree cover of the country is 8,09,537 square kilometres (which is 24.62 percent of the geographical area of the country) compared to 7,94,245 sq km (24.16 percent) in ISFR 2015. There is an increase of 15,292 sq km of forest and tree cover of the country from ISFR,20115 to ISFR2021. The ISFRs also pointed out that the positive change could be attributed to conservation measures or management interventions such as afforestation activities, participation of local people for better protection in plantation areas as well as in traditional forest areas, expansion of trees outside forests, tree plantation drives etc.
In order to achieve the targeted objectives of National Afforestation Proggramme,the Ministry has merged NAP into Green India Mission (GIM) so that the overall greening efforts are augmented. The budget allocation for the merged scheme has increased from Rs. 160 crore in the year 2020-21 to Rs. 220 crore during the year 2021-22.
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