NGT Demands Answers: 2.33 Million Hectares of Tree Cover Lost Since 2000

The NGT has called for responses from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), the Survey of India (SoI), and the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) regarding a report alleging that India has lost 2.33 million hectares (6%) of its tree cover since 2000.

Acting on a report from The Indian Express titled “India Lost 2.33 Million Hectares of Tree Cover Since 2000: Global Forest Watch,” Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava, judicial member Justice Arun Kumar Tyagi, and expert member Dr. A Senthil Vel took suo motu action on the matter.

The Tribunal noted a GFW report stating India lost 414,000 hectares of humid primary forest from 2002 to 2023, 18% of total tree cover loss. Between 2001 and 2022, Indian forests emitted 51 million tons of CO2 but absorbed 141 million tons annually, creating a net carbon sink.

Forests act as carbon sinks, but 95% of India’s tree cover loss from 2013 to 2023 occurred naturally. Five states accounted for 60% of this loss: Assam, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, and Manipur.

India’s deforestation rate was 668,000 hectares per year from 2015 to 2020, second-highest globally. The NGT found these trends violated environmental laws, issuing notices to the Ministry, SoI, and CPCB for a hearing on August 28. The SoI Director must submit a report on India’s forest cover, particularly in the Northeast, from 2000 to March 2024.

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