India restores 21.76 million hectares of deforested land, nears 84 per cent of Bonn Challenge target
New Delhi, June 17
India has restored 21.76 million hectares of degraded and deforested land between 2011 and 2020, achieving nearly 84 per cent of its Bonn Challenge target of restoring 26 million hectares by 2030, according to a report by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Aming the states, Telangana has recorded the maximum area restored, followed by Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Odisha as per IUCN's India's Second Progress Report on Bonn Challenge: 2011 - 2020.
The Bonn Challenge is a global initiative launched in 2011 to restore degraded and deforested landscapes, targets bringing 350 million hectares under restoration by 2030. The Challenge has already surpassed the 150-million-hectare milestone for pledges in 2017.
The India's Second Progress Report on the Bonn Challenge (2011-2020) was released at an event to commemorate the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought 2026.
Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav hailed India's approach at the event, which he said demonstrates that the convergence of policy commitment, scientific innovation and public participation can make environmental restoration an effective pathway towards sustainable development.
Announcing that India has already brought 21.76 million hectares of land under restoration efforts against its target of restoring 26 million hectares by 2030 under the Bonn Challenge, the Minister said the country has consistently advanced sustainable land management as a Party to UNCCD, according to a release from the Ministry of Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
Yadav noted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced India's commitment to restore 26 million hectares of degraded and deforested land by 2030, one of the largest restoration commitments in the world.
"Restoration activities have generated around 1.22 billion person-days of employment," he said.
The Minister shared that more than 27 million hectares have been treated under the Watershed Development Component of Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana and over 61.3 million geo-tagged natural resource management assets have been created.
— ANI
Reader Comments
It's encouraging to see that restoration also generated 1.22 billion person-days of employment. That is a double win for the environment and rural livelihoods. But we must ensure these jobs are not just short-term but lead to sustainable, long-term green jobs for local communities. Also, how much of this restoration is actually native forest versus monoculture plantations? Need more transparency.
Good work but 26 million hectares by 2030 still sounds like a lot of ground to cover. We are at 21.76 million now, and only 4.24 million hectares to go, but the last stretch is always the toughest. The states like Gujarat and MP have done well, but I hope the Northeastern states also get more focus—they have huge potential for restoration.
From an outsider's perspective, this is impressive progress. India's commitment to the Bonn Challenge is one of the largest in the world. However, I wonder how much of this restoration is truly restoring biodiversity versus simply planting trees. The IPCC has highlighted that restoring degraded lands can also help with carbon sequestration, so that's a plus. Hope the next report includes more on biodiversity impacts.
The combination of policy, science, and public participation mentioned by the minister sounds promising. I'd be interested in knowing the specific innovations or scientific methods used. Also, 61.3 million geo-tagged assets is quite a number—good use of tech for monitoring. But are these assets actually maintained and functional? Data collection is one thing, real impact on the ground is another.
Finally some positive news on environment from India! As
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