By 2030, the government hopes to restore 26 million hectares of forestland.
The government’s goal is to reforest 26 million hectares of land by the year 2030. These once-diverse landscapes have become less so over time and are now considered degraded. During the G20 meeting, Bivash Rajan emphasised the necessity of repairing and maintaining them.
CHENNAI:
On the eve of the fourth meeting of the G20 Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group in Chennai, Bivash Ranjan, additional director general of forests (ADGF), Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, stated that India has set an ambitious goal to restore 26 million hectares of forest land and create 2.5-3 billion tonnes of additional carbon sinks.
The fourth working group, which began on Tuesday with a record number of delegates present, has three thematic goals, including “Land degradation, ecosystem restoration, biodiversity, and water resources.” 225 delegates are slated to attend its ministerial meeting on July 28.
In response to a query from The New Indian Express, Bivash Ranjan stated that wild forest fires are affecting 27% of India’s forestland and that natural regeneration was not taking place. Additionally, India has recovered 38% of the forest area lost to mining; the goal was to recover the remaining 62%.
“These damaged ecosystems were formerly teeming with biodiversity. We must repair and care for them. During the Saudi presidency, the G20 Global Land Initiative (GLI) was established with the goal of preventing, halting, and reversing land degradation and reducing degraded land by 50% by 2040. GLI will keep an eye on the state of the land’s restoration. However, India has voluntarily developed structural and useful methods to track the restoration, and organisations like the Indian Institute of Forest Management have been tasked with doing so and submitting a report, according to Bivash.
The first gathering of the G20 working group after the historic Kunming Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework was held, according to him. By promising to restore 26 million hectares by 2030, India will accomplish two goals: increase biodiversity and meet the targets outlined in the Global Biodiversity Framework.
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