The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has raised serious questions over the performance of the Green India Mission, a flagship initiative aimed at restoring forests, improving ecosystem quality and strengthening India’s climate resilience.
Launched as one of the eight missions under the National Action Plan on Climate Change, the programme was designed to do more than increase tree cover. Its objectives included improving forest quality, restoring biodiversity, enhancing water retention and increasing carbon absorption.
However, according to the CAG report, the mission has fallen far short of its targets after nearly a decade. Against a target of improving the quality of 1.4 million hectares of forest, work was reportedly completed across only about 0.11 million hectares. Expansion of forest cover also achieved only around four per cent of the targeted level.
The audit further pointed to inadequate coordination between the Green India Mission and other government initiatives, including CAMPA-funded afforestation programmes and rural employment schemes. This lack of coordination, the report suggests, has weakened the overall impact of forest restoration efforts.
The findings also highlight the difference between increasing tree cover and restoring natural forests. India’s green cover reportedly increased by 1,445 square kilometres in 2023, but only 156 square kilometres of that increase constituted actual forest cover. The remaining area largely comprised tree cover outside recorded forests.
Environmental experts have long stressed that forests cannot be measured simply by counting saplings. A healthy forest supports wildlife, insects, native plants, soil and water systems, forming a complex ecosystem.
The CAG findings therefore underline the need to move beyond plantation drives and focus on protecting existing forests, restoring native species, improving ecosystems and involving local communities in conservation efforts.
