Plans to increase forest cover by 10 million ha

BANGALORE: The Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) plans to increase the green cover inside and outside forest areas across the country by almost 10 million hectares in the next five years, announced director general of forests and special secretary MoEF, Dr P J Dilip Kumar.Inaugurating a workshop on operational guidelines for implementation of Green India Mission here on Thursday, he said, “The planning process has just begun. We have selected 100 landscapes from across the country.”The project forms one among the eight action plans as per the vision of Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh for Green India by mitigating climate change. He said, “The mission is aimed at regenerating forest conservation through landscape approach, community participation and to provide maximum benefits to forest dwellers.”Relating to the steps taken by the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE), Dr V K Bahuguna, director general ICFRE, said that the ICFRE has created various branches to address issues related to climate change, forest, land and water conservation.