Parliament Question: Monitoring of Tree Plantation

OIH GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 58 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21.07.2025 Monitoring of Tree Plantation

58. SHRI BRIJMOHAN AGRAWAL:

Will the Minister of ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE be pleased to

state:

(a) whether 18 crore saplings claimed to have been planted in Chhattisgarh over a decade out of which a large number of saplings did not survive and if so, the details thereof;

(b) whether there has been massive degradation in forest area due to the mining projects in areas like Bastar, Korba and Dantewada in the State of Chhattisgarh and whether the consent of concerned Gram Sabha was taken for the said projects and if so, the details thereof;

(c) whether several development projects in the said State are pending for years due to lack of environmental clearance and if so, the details thereof;

(d) whether any concrete action plan has been made for tree plantation on the unused land, if so, the details thereof and the total area of land worked upon;

(e) whether the monitoring of all these Schemes through measures like satellite mapping, geo-tagging or social audit has been ensured by the Government; and

(f) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor along with the initiatives taken by the Government for upkeeping of the said planted trees? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE (SHRI KIRTI VARDHAN SINGH)

(a) In the decade from 2010-11 to 2019-20, the State of Chhattisgarh has successfully planted approximately 18 crore saplings, reflecting a strong commitment to environmental conservation and afforestation. Monitoring efforts have been consistently undertaken, and ninety percent of sites were observed to have a good survival rate, indicating a high overall success rate in plantation efforts.

(b) A comparative analysis of the Forest Survey of India (FSI) reports from 2013 and 2023 reveals no significant degradation in forest cover in Chhattisgarh. Further, the 2023 report highlights a notable increase in the area under Very Dense Forest, reflecting the efforts taken by Chattisgarh in forest conservation and sustainable management. All forest land diversions for mining in Chhattisgarh are carried out in strict adherence to the provisions of the Van (Sankrashan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980 and the Forest Rights Act, 2006, with due consent obtained from Gram Sabhas as per provisions of these acts.(c) No proposal related to Chhattisgarh State is pending beyond the stipulated timeline of 105 days as per available information portrayed in the PARIVESH Portal of the Ministry.

(d) Plantations within forest areas are carried out in line with the approved Working Plans and also on land made available by the Revenue Department. However, it may be noted that the Forest Department does not maintain any specific category of land termed as unused land.

(e)&(f) Monitoring of schemes implemented by the Department of Forests and Climate Change is conducted through manual field inspections and inter-circle verification by concerned officers. For CAMPA-funded plantations, third-party verification is undertaken, along with GIS-based monitoring via the e-Green Watch portal. All plantation sites are also geo-tagged to ensure transparency and accountability in monitoring.

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