Government think people will believe whatever they are told, so look beyond the headline numbers.

The claim is that 2.1 million hectares of dry woodland increased between 2014–2024. But this is afforestation/tree-cover data, which include plantations, private plantations and even agroforestry on farmland.

That is very different from natural forest. Global Forest Watch reports primary-forest loss in India, while Forest Survey of India data has also shown dense-forest and Northeast forest decline.

The key point: more “tree cover” does not automatically mean more natural forest. Satellite data can count greenery, including planted areas that are neither natural forests nor protected ecosystems.

Then changes to the Forest (Conservation) Act narrowed which areas receive legal forest protection, including forests that exist on the ground but aren't officially recorded.
And between 2015–2019, India reportedly lost 18x more forest than it gained, while 86% of protected-area loss was reported in Uttar Pradesh.

So the question is simple: Are natural forests actually increasing, or are the numbers being presented in a way that makes the situation look better than it is?

@ISNReport