Chandigarh forest cover rises by over 7 sq km in decade

The total forest cover in the city has increased by 7.74 sq km in a decade — up from 17.26 sq km in 2010-11 to 25 sq km in 2021-22.

According to the “Environmental Accounting on Forest -2025”, a report released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, the very dense forest in the city had increased from 1.36 sq km in 2010-11 to 1.44 sq km in 2021-22. Similarly, moderately dense forest rose from 9.66 sq km in 2010-11 to 13.22 sq km in 2021-22 and open forest from 6.24 sq km to 10.04 sq km. However, non-forest area decreased from 96.18 sq km in 2010-11 to 88.22 sq km in 2021-22.

The report states that the very dense forest increased by 5.88%, moderately dense forest by 39.96% and open forest by 60.90% in the decade while non-forest area reduced by 8.28%.

According to officials, sustained efforts were made by the Department of Forest and Wildlife in improving the quality of the forest by planting indigenous species such as shisham, khair and babul. No exotic species are being planted for the past couple of years.

The continuous engagement of the department with important stakeholders, including NGOs, RWAs, eco clubs, environmental societies and the media, played a crucial role not only in protecting the forests but also increasing the green cover.

Punjab Governor and UT Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria had on July 5 led a massive tree plantation drive on the occasion of Van Mahotsav. In a single day, 1,17,836 saplings were planted at 318 locations, surpassing the target of 1,05,874 saplings at 253 identified sites. The Governor planted saplings at 23 locations.