Forest Cover in India
India is a large and diverse country and it is one of the 17 mega biodiverse regions of the world. Its land area includes regions with some of the world’s highest rainfall to very dry deserts, coastline to alpine regions, and river deltas to tropical islands. The variety and distribution of forest vegetation is large and include tropical evergreens, tropical deciduous, swamps, mangroves, sub-tropical, montane, scrub, sub-alpine, and alpine forests. These forests support a variety of ecosystems with diverse flora and fauna.
As per the India State of Forest Report 2021
- The total forest and tree cover of India is 80.9 million hectares which is 24.62% of the geographical area of the country.
- As compared to the assessment of 2019, there is an increase of 2,261 sq km in the total forest and tree cover of the country.
- The increase in the forest cover has been observed as 1,540 sq km, and that in tree cover is 721 sq km.
- The total mangrove cover in the country is 4,992 sq km. An increase of 17 sq Km as compared to the previous assessment of 2019.
- The total carbon stock in the country’s forest is estimated to be 7,204 million tonnes, an increase of 79.4 million tonnes in compared to the last assessment of 2019.
- The annual increase in the carbon stock is 39.7 million tonnes.
also read about Top Indian States by Sworn Area
The India Forest Survey 2021 reveals that 17 states and union territories (UTs) in India have over 33 percent of their land covered by forests. Among them, Lakshadweep, Mizoram, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Arunachal Pradesh, and Meghalaya have more than 75 percent of their land covered by forests. On the other hand, Manipur, Nagaland, Tripura, Goa, Kerala, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, Assam, and Odisha have forest cover ranging from 33 percent to 75 percent.
When it comes to the area covered by forests, Madhya Pradesh has the largest forested area in the country, followed by Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, and Maharashtra. The top three states that have seen an increase in forest cover are Andhra Pradesh (647 sq. km.), Telangana (632 sq. km.), and Odisha (537 sq. km.).
The total mangrove cover in the country is 4,992 sq. km., which has increased by 17 sq km compared to the assessment in 2019. The top three states that have seen an increase in mangrove cover are Odisha (8 sq km), Maharashtra (4 sq km), and Karnataka (3 sq. km.).
List of States and UTs by Forest Cover
| # | State/ UT | Area (sq. km) | Forest cover (sq. km) | % of Total Area |
| 1 | Andaman and Nicobar Islands | 8,249 | 6,744 | 81.76% |
| 2 | Andhra Pradesh | 162,968 | 29,784 | 18.28% |
| 3 | Arunachal Pradesh | 83,743 | 66,431 | 79.33% |
| 4 | Assam | 78,438 | 28,312 | 36.09% |
| 5 | Bihar | 94,163 | 7,381 | 7.84% |
| 6 | Chandigarh | 114 | 23 | 20.18% |
| 7 | Chhattisgarh | 135,191 | 55,717 | 41.21% |
| 8 | Dadra & Nagar Haveli | 603 | 228 | 37.81% |
| 9 | Delhi | 1,484 | 195 | 13.14% |
| 10 | Goa | 3,702 | 2,244 | 60.62% |
| 11 | Gujarat | 196,024 | 14,926 | 7.61% |
| 12 | Haryana | 44,212 | 1,603 | 3.63% |
| 13 | Himachal Pradesh | 55,673 | 15,443 | 27.74% |
| 14 | Jammu & Kashmir | 138,942 | 23,659 | 17.03% |
| 15 | Jharkhand | 79,714 | 23,721 | 29.76% |
| 16 | Karnataka | 191,791 | 38,730 | 20.19% |
| 17 | Kerala | 38,863 | 21,253 | 54.69% |
| 18 | Lakshadweep | 32 | 27 | 84.38% |
| 19 | Madhya Pradesh | 308,245 | 77,493 | 25.14% |
| 20 | Maharashtra | 307,713 | 50,798 | 16.51% |
| 21 | Manipur | 22,327 | 16,598 | 74.34% |
| 22 | Meghalaya | 22,429 | 17,046 | 76.00% |
| 23 | Mizoram | 21,081 | 17,820 | 84.53% |
| 24 | Nagaland | 16,579 | 12,251 | 73.89% |
| 25 | Odisha | 155,707 | 52,156 | 33.50% |
| 26 | Puducherry | 479 | 53 | 11.13% |
| 27 | Punjab | 50,362 | 1,847 | 3.67% |
| 28 | Rajasthan | 342,239 | 16,655 | 4.87% |
| 29 | Sikkim | 7,096 | 3,341 | 47.08% |
| 30 | Tamil Nadu | 130,051 | 26,419 | 20.31% |
| 31 | Telangana | 112,077 | 21,214 | 18.93% |
| 32 | Tripura | 10,486 | 7,722 | 73.64% |
| 33 | Uttar Pradesh | 240,928 | 14,818 | 6.15% |
| 34 | Uttarakhand | 53,483 | 24,305 | 45.44% |
| 35 | West Bengal | 88,752 | 16,832 | 18.97% |
| India | 3,203,940 | 713,789 | 22.28% |
1. The Forest cover includes all lands that have a tree canopy density of more than ten percent when projected vertically on the horizontal ground, within a minimum area extent of one hectare.
2. Jammu & Kashmir includes data for the UT of Jammu & Kashmir and the UT of Ladakh.
Source: India State of Forest Report 2001-2021
Top States by Forest Cover
Area-wise Madhya Pradesh has the largest forest cover in the country followed by Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, and Maharashtra.
| # | State/ UT | Forest cover (Sq. km) |
| 1 | Madhya Pradesh | 77,493 |
| 2 | Arunachal Pradesh | 66,431 |
| 3 | Chhattisgarh | 55,717 |
| 4 | Odisha | 52,156 |
| 5 | Maharashtra | 50,798 |
| 6 | Karnataka | 38,730 |
| 7 | Andhra Pradesh | 29,784 |
| 8 | Assam | 28,312 |
| 9 | Tamil Nadu | 26,419 |
| 10 | Uttarakhand | 24,305 |
Source: India State of Forest Report 2001-2021
Top States by percentage of total area
In terms of forest cover as a percentage of total geographical area, the top five States are Mizoram (84.53%), Arunachal Pradesh (79.33%), Meghalaya (76.00%), Manipur (74.34%) and Nagaland (73.90%).
| # | State/ UT | % of Total Area |
| 1 | Mizoram | 84.53% |
| 2 | Arunachal Pradesh | 79.33% |
| 3 | Meghalaya | 76.00% |
| 4 | Manipur | 74.34% |
| 5 | Nagaland | 73.89% |
| 6 | Tripura | 73.64% |
| 7 | Goa | 60.62% |
| 8 | Kerala | 54.69% |
| 9 | Sikkim | 47.08% |
| 10 | Uttarakhand | 45.44% |
Source: India State of Forest Report 2001-2021, Forest Survey of India, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
States by least Forest Cover
In terms of forest cover as a percentage of total geographical area, the least five States are Haryana (3.63%), Punjab (3.67%), Rajasthan (4.87%), Uttar Pradesh (6.15%) and Gujarat (7.61%).
| # | State/ UT | % of Total Area |
| 1 | Haryana | 3.63% |
| 2 | Punjab | 3.67% |
| 3 | Rajasthan | 4.87% |
| 4 | Uttar Pradesh | 6.15% |
| 5 | Gujarat | 7.61% |
| 6 | Bihar | 7.84% |
| 7 | Delhi | 13.14% |
| 8 | Maharashtra | 16.51% |
| 9 | Andhra Pradesh | 18.28% |
| 10 | Telangana | 18.93% |
Source: India State of Forest Report 2001-2021
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