INDIA STATE OF FOREST REPORT (ISFR) 2023 (WITH MADHYA PRADESH FOCUS)
1. Introduction & Institutional Framework
The India State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2023 was released on 21 December 2024 by Union Minister Bhupender Yadav at Forest Research Institute, Dehradun.The report is prepared by the Forest Survey of India (FSI) and published biennially since 1987. ISFR 2023 is the 18th report in the series.Assessment methodology includes:
- Remote Sensing Satellite Data
- National Forest Inventory (NFI)
The report provides comprehensive data on forest cover, tree cover, mangroves, carbon stock, growing stock, forest fire, agroforestry, etc.
2. National Forest & Tree Cover Status
India’s total forest and tree cover is 8,27,357 sq km (25.17%) of geographical area:
- Forest Cover → 7,15,343 sq km (21.76%)
- Tree Cover → 1,12,014 sq km (3.41%)
Change (2021–2023):
- Total increase → +1,445 sq km
- Forest cover → +156 sq km
- Tree cover → +1,289 sq km
👉 Key Insight: Growth is driven more by tree cover (agroforestry, plantations) than dense forests.
3. State-wise Performance
(A) Largest Forest + Tree Cover (Area-wise)
- Madhya Pradesh → 85,724 sq km (1st)
- Arunachal Pradesh → 67,083 sq km
- Maharashtra → 65,383 sq km
(B) Largest Forest Cover (Only)
- Madhya Pradesh → 77,073 sq km (1st)
- Arunachal Pradesh → 65,882 sq km
- Chhattisgarh → 55,812 sq km
👉 Conclusion:Madhya Pradesh = Forest Capital of India (area-wise)
4. Percentage-wise Forest Cover
- Lakshadweep → 91.33% (Highest)
- Mizoram → 85.34%
- Andaman & Nicobar Islands → 81.62%
👉 19 States/UTs have >33% forest cover
👉 8 States/UTs have >75% forest cover
5. Increase in Forest Cover (Key States)
Forest + Tree Cover Increase
- Chhattisgarh (+684 sq km)
- Uttar Pradesh (+559 sq km)
- Odisha (+559 sq km)
- Rajasthan (+394 sq km)
Forest Cover Increase Only
- Mizoram (+242 sq km)
- Gujarat (+180 sq km)
- Odisha (+152 sq km)
6. Other Key National Indicators
- Mangrove Cover → 4,992 sq km
- Growing Stock → 6,430 million cum
- Inside forest → 4,479 million cum
- Outside forest → 1,951 million cum
- Increase in Growing Stock → +262 million cum
- Bamboo Area → 1,54,670 sq km (+5,227 sq km)
- Timber Potential (TOF) → 91.51 million cum annually
- Carbon Stock → 7,285.5 million tonnes
- Increase → +81.5 million tonnes
👉 NDC Target Status:
- Achieved → 2.29 billion tonnes CO₂ sink
- Target → 2.5–3.0 billion tonnes by 2030
7. Madhya Pradesh – Detailed Forest Analysis (ISFR 2023)
(A) Overall Forest Cover
- Total Forest Cover → 77,073.44 sq km
- % of Geographical Area → 25.00%
Forest Type Distribution
- Very Dense Forest (VDF) → 7,021.31 sq km (2.28%)
- Moderately Dense Forest (MDF) → 33,508.64 sq km (10.87%)
- Open Forest (OF) → 36,543.49 sq km (11.85%)
- Scrub → 3,124.20 sq km (1.01%)
👉 Key Observation:
- Majority forest = MDF + Open Forest
- Very Dense Forest is very low proportion
(B) Land Use Pattern (MP – ISFR 2023 Data)
- Geographical Area → 30,825 (‘000 ha)
- Reporting Area → 30,756 (‘000 ha)
Major Land Use
- Net Area Sown → 51.44% (Highest)
- Forest Area → 28.31%
- Land not available for cultivation → 10.93%
- Pastures & Grazing → 4.08%
- Culturable wasteland → 2.88%
- Fallow land (other) → 1.16%
- Current fallow → 1.12%
- Misc. tree crops → 0.08%
👉 Conclusion: Agriculture dominates; forest is second largest land use.
8. District-wise Forest Analysis (Madhya Pradesh)
(A) Very Dense Forest (VDF)
Top 3 Districts (Area)
- Balaghat → 1,180.47 sq km
- Mandla → 909.00 sq km
- Dindori → 632.32 sq km
Bottom 3 Districts
👉 Insight: VDF concentrated in tribal + forest belt (eastern MP)
(B) Moderately Dense Forest (MDF)
Top 3 Districts
- Balaghat → 2,547.62 sq km
- Chhindwara → 2,127.73 sq km
- Seoni → 1,721.44 sq km
Bottom 3 Districts
- Shajapur → 0.15 sq km
- Rajgarh → 37.11 sq km
- Agar Malwa → 1.84 sq km
👉 Insight: MDF dominates central tribal belt
(C) Open Forest (OF)
Top 3 Districts
- Sagar → 1,593.21 sq km
- Chhindwara → 1,976.62 sq km
- Balaghat → 1,193.09 sq km
Bottom 3 Districts
- Ujjain → 39.18 sq km
- Shajapur → 29.11 sq km
- Rajgarh → 135.77 sq km
👉 Insight: Open forest widespread but low in western & urban districts
(D) Total Forest Cover (% of District Area)
Top 3 Districts (% of GA)
- Sheopur → 51.59%
- Balaghat → 53.32%
- Mandla → 45.67%
Bottom 3 Districts
- Shajapur → 0.84%
- Rajgarh → 2.81%
- Ratlam → 2.45%
(E) Change in Forest Cover (2021–2023)
Highest Increase
- Bhind → +81.07 sq km
- Datia → +23.49 sq km
Highest Decrease
- Damoh → -85.29 sq km
- Sagar → -71.38 sq km
9. Integrated Observations (MP Specific)
- Forest distribution is highly uneven
- Eastern & Tribal belt (Balaghat, Mandla, Dindori, Seoni) → High forest
- Western & Northern districts (Shajapur, Rajgarh, Morena) → Very low forest
- Dominant forest type → Open + Moderately Dense
- VDF is limited and concentrated
10. Final Conclusion
India’s forest sector shows gradual improvement, with:
- Increase in tree cover and carbon stock
- Stable forest cover in major states
Madhya Pradesh remains the leading state in terms of forest area, but faces:
- Low dense forest proportion
- Regional imbalance in forest distribution