Forest cover claims unscientific

The India State of the Forest Report, 2021, paints a picture of Karnataka as one of the top five states to increase its forest cover -- by 155 sq km. The reality is different. The devil is in the detail, and a thorough reading of the survey shows that the state has not much to be proud of. For starters, the state’s forest cover at 20.19% falls woefully short of the targeted 33% of geographical area (GA) as envisaged by the national forest policy. In about a dozen districts, the green cover is less than 10%, while in some others, it is less than even 3%. Most of these districts have also not made any substantial addition to their green cover in the past two years. While Tumakuru added the highest area of 39 sq km, Udupi lost nearly 27 sq km to ‘development’. Some districts face a genuine issue though, as the GA under the control of the forest department is itself low. For instance, in Vijayapura, only 0.17% of the landmass belongs to the forest department, which prevents it from taking up afforestation.

According to the survey, India has increased its forest cover by 2,261 sq km in the last two years, but experts question the methodology adopted and even doubt if the numbers are artificially boosted to support India’s climate change commitments announced by the Prime Minister at the UN Climate Conference at Glasgow. The very definition of ‘forest cover’ is flawed as it does not distinguish between natural forests and tree cover like sugarcane fields or plantations. As tree patches of over one hectare with a canopy density of more than 10% are considered forests, even coffee estates in districts like and Kodagu and Chikkamagaluru become ‘forests’. And perhaps so do the thick shrubs of weeds like Lantana that have become a menace in the tiger reserves of Bandipur, B R Hills and Nagarahole.

Considering that the report is defective and unscientific, claims about the green cover increasing in Karnataka need to be taken with more than a pinch of salt. Besides, given the increasing complaints about timber smuggling, often with the connivance of forest officers, and the afforestation programmes remaining far from satisfactory, the state government should order an audit to assess the health of the state’s forests. Karnataka has for long remained complacent. It is time the government wakes up to aggressively pursue the goal of achieving the target of 33% forest cover, and genuine forest area at that.