India approved diversion of 215,943 hectares of forestland in 12 years
India approved diversion of 215,943 hectares of forestland for non-forest use between 2014-15 and 2025-26, according to official data
Nearly 62% of this land was diverted for mining, hydropower, irrigation, and road projects
The annual pace of diversion has accelerated sharply: from about 14,941 hectares/year (roughly 41 ha/day) in the 2014-19 period to about 22,562 hectares/year (about 61 ha/day) in 2024-26
2025-26 alone recorded 26,858 hectares diverted — the highest single-year figure in the 12-year period, a 47% jump over 2024-25
States such as Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, and Himachal Pradesh saw disproportionately large increases in diversion in the most recent two years compared to the 2014-19 baseline
Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 — now Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980
The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 requires prior approval of the central government before any forest land is diverted for non-forest purposes, or before forest land is de-reserved. It was enacted to check indiscriminate deforestation and the diversion of forest land for mining, industry, and infrastructure without central oversight. The Forest (Conservation) Amendment Act, 2023 renamed the law and narrowed its scope of applicability.
Key Details
- Original 1980 Act: diversion approval process runs through the state government, Forest Advisory Committee (FAC), and the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
- The 2023 Amendment Act renamed the law as the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980, inserted a preamble, and exempted certain categories from clearance requirements — including strategic/security projects within 100 km of international borders/LAC/LoC, small roadside amenities, zoos, safaris, and eco-tourism facilities
- The 2023 amendment also exempted forest land that was converted to non-forest use on or before December 12, 1996 by state/UT authorities from the Act's purview
- All exemptions remain conditional on compliance measures such as compensatory afforestation
The 12-year uptick in diversion, especially the sharp rise after 2023, is directly linked to how the 2023 amendment narrowed which lands require clearance and expanded exempted categories, alongside continuing pressure from mining, hydropower, and road-building.
T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India (1996) — the "Dictionary Meaning" of Forest
This Supreme Court case (popularly the "Godavarman case") is the foundational precedent defining what counts as "forest" for the purposes of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980. The Court held that the term "forest" must be understood by its dictionary meaning, covering any area with tree cover regardless of ownership, legal classification, or whether it is officially notified as forest.
Key Details
- The Court directed all state governments to identify areas that are "forest" in the dictionary sense, irrespective of notification, classification, or ownership, and apply FCA restrictions to them
- This expanded the Act's coverage beyond notified/reserved forests to any land with forest-like characteristics
- The Supreme Court has, in interim orders since, reaffirmed reliance on the 1996 Godavarman-based definition where states have not yet notified their own forest definitions consistent with it
Any narrowing of the Act's scope (as under the 2023 amendment) interacts directly with the Godavarman definition — critics flagged that excluding certain unrecorded or pre-1996-converted lands from clearance requirements could shrink the practical reach of protections the Godavarman judgment had extended.
Compensatory Afforestation and CAMPA
Whenever forest land is legally diverted for non-forest use under the FCA, the user agency is required to fund "compensatory afforestation" — raising forest cover on an equivalent area of non-forest land (or degraded forest land, at double the area, where non-forest land is unavailable). The Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act, 2016 institutionalised the collection and use of this money.
Key Details
- The 2016 Act (in force from September 30, 2018, along with CAF Rules 2018) set up the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) at national and state levels
- Funds are collected from user agencies (in lieu of diverted forest land) and released to states for afforestation, with the states' share of funds raised to 90% and the Centre's share at 10%
- Compensatory afforestation is meant to offset ecological loss from diversion, though its effectiveness as biodiversity-equivalent replacement is widely debated in policy and academic circles
The scale of diversion reported (215,943 ha) represents a corresponding scale of compensatory afforestation obligation under CAMPA — a key data point for evaluating whether afforestation is keeping pace with the area diverted, especially as diversion accelerates.
- Total forestland diverted, 2014-15 to 2025-26: 215,943 hectares
- Share diverted to mining, hydropower, irrigation, and roads: about 62%
- Diversion pace: rose from ~14,941 ha/year (2014-19) to ~19,223 ha/year (2019-24) to ~22,562 ha/year (2024-26)
- Highest single year: 2025-26 with 26,858 hectares (47% higher than 2024-25)
- Forest (Conservation) Amendment Act renamed the 1980 law as the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980, in 2023
- Godavarman judgment year: 1996 (T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India)
- Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act notified/enforced: 2018 (Act passed 2016)