Why is only 20.64% of India total land under forest?
Answers
Explanation:
Only 20.64 % of land is under forest because of deforestation by that india is under less for forest
Explanation:
India''s total forest and tree cover has increased by 5081 sq km in the past two years, the latest Indian State of Forest Report (ISFR 2015), released by the Forest Survey of India (FSI), says. Released on Friday by Union minister of environment, forests and climate change, Prakash Javadekar, under whose ministry the FSI comes, the mood among FSI officials and the minister was celebratory, as the biannual report was held up as a sign of India solidly on the path of achieving its INDC targets, as the climate change talks went on Paris.
Forest covers of a geographical area includes all lands having a tree density of 10 per cent and more and have a minimum area of one hectare. Tree cover estimation is a sample based exercise and the report explains that it comprises tree patches less than a hectare in the form of block plantations, linear plantations and scattered trees.
The report says forest cover has increased by 3,775 sq km to take it to a total of 7,01,673 sq km, which is 21.34 per cent of the country's geographical area (GA). Tree cover has gone up by 1,306 sq km to a total of 9,2,572 sq km or 2.82 per cent of the country's GA. The mangrove cover of the country has increased by 112 sq km to 4,740 sq km.
Maharashtra, however, saw a decrease in the forest cover to 50,628 sq km out of a total geographical area of 3,07,713 sq km. In 2013 its forest cover was 50,632 sq km, which was also a decrease from the 2011 data. Both reports attributed the decrease to encroachment on forest lands, with the 2015 report adding rotational felling and diversion of of forest area for non-forestry purposes as reasons.
These numbers are all as compared to previous assessment carried out in 2013.
The 2013 ISFR too reported such an increase at least in forest covers. The forest cover of the country had increased by 5871 sq km taking it to 697808 sq km country-wide as compared to the 2011 data. However, mangrove cover decreased by 34 sq km as compared to 2011 data, while in 2011 the mangrove cover had increased by 23.34 sq km as compared to 2009