CHANDIGARH: The dense forest cover in Haryana has declined, but the total forest and tree cover has increased, according to the India State of Forest Report 2023, which was recently released. Similarly, in neighbouring Punjab, the forest cover decreased by 0.45 square kilometres in 2023 compared to 2021, although tree cover witnessed an increase.
The report states that Haryana experienced a reduction of 0.83 square kilometres in very dense forests (three per cent) and 4.2 square kilometres in moderately dense forests (about one per cent) since the previous report in 2021.
However, there was a marginal increase in the state’s open forests, which expanded from 1,130.10 square kilometres in 2021 to 1,145.91 square kilometres in 2023. Additionally, the area classified as scrubland grew from 158.93 square kilometres (0.36 per cent) in 2021 to 174.38 square kilometres (0.39 per cent) in 2023.
Out of the 22 districts in Haryana, 15 recorded a decrease in forest cover over the past two years. Rohtak witnessed the highest decline with a 4.28 per cent reduction, followed by Mewat, which recorded a 4.05 per cent decrease. Conversely, Ambala registered the highest increase in forest cover, with a 4.08 per cent rise.
The report highlights a significant decline in forest cover outside Recorded Forest Areas (RFAs), which dropped from 1,229 square kilometres in 2021 to 885.33 square kilometres in 2023. Very dense forests outside RFAs decreased from six to 3.18 square kilometres, dense forests from 290 to 182.14 square kilometres, and open forests from 933 to 699.74 square kilometres.
Overall, the forest cover constitutes just 3.65 per cent of Haryana’s geographical area. Of this, only 0.06 per cent is covered by very dense forests, one per cent by moderately dense forests, and 2.59 per cent by open forests.
In neighbouring Punjab, which has a total geographical area of 50,362 square kilometres, the forest cover decreased by 0.45 square kilometres in 2023 compared to 2021. The forest area dropped to 1,846.09 square kilometres from 1,846.54 square kilometres in 2021.
The forest cover in Punjab stands at just 3.67 per cent. However, the tree cover increased significantly, rising from 1,297.93 square kilometres in 2021 to 1,465.15 square kilometres in 2023—an increase of 177.22 square kilometres.
According to the 2023 report, Punjab has very dense forests in 9.44 square kilometres, compared to 11 square kilometres in 2021. Moderately dense forests cover 784.89 square kilometres, down from 793 square kilometres in 2021. Meanwhile, open forests expanded slightly to 1,051.76 square kilometres, up from 1,043 square kilometres in 2021, bringing the total forest cover to 1,846.09 square kilometres—a decline of 0.45 square kilometres.
Punjab has reserved forests covering 44 square kilometres, protected forests spanning 1,137 square kilometres, and unclassed forests extending across 1,903 square kilometres. The total recorded forest area amounts to 3,084 square kilometres, which represents 6.12 per cent of the state’s geographical area.
Additionally, the report noted that Punjab witnessed a sharp rise in forest fires, with 605 incidents recorded in 2023-24, up from just 119 fires in 2022-23.