India's forest, tree cover grows by 1,445 sq km, says govt data

India's total forest and tree cover has grown by 1,445 square kilometers - an area equivalent to Delhi - reaching 827,357 sq km or 25.17% of the country's geographical area, according to data released by the government on Saturday that also revealed a complex picture where increased coverage through plantations runs parallel to significant degradation of natural forests.

- Jayashree Nandi and Amit Bathla

NEW DELHI/DEHRADUN:

The latest biennial State of Forest report by the Forest Survey of India, delayed by more than a year, showed that while India's green cover has grown to encompass 25.17% of its geographical area, almost all the growth (149.13 sq km out of 156.41 sq km) has occurred outside natural forests through plantations and agroforestry.

At the same time, over 92,000 sq km of natural forests have degraded from dense to open categories in the past decade, raising concerns about the quality of India's forest resources despite the headline growth in numbers.

"I am happy to introduce here the achievements made by our country in an important area of carbon sequestration," said Bhupender Yadav, Union environment minister, at the report's launch at the Forest Research Institute in Dehradun.