According to Global Forest Watch, India is estimated to have lost 414 kha of moist primary forest between 2002 and 2023, accounting for 18% of the total tree cover loss over the same period. The total area of ​​moist primary forest in India has decreased by 4.1% during this period. Over the period 2001-2023, India lost 2.33 Mha of tree cover, equivalent to a 6.0% decline in tree cover since 2000, and 1.20 Gt of CO₂e emissions.

Some studies have pointed out that the country recorded the highest increase in deforestation in the past thirty years during 2015-2020. According to Utility Bidder, a UK-based energy and utility comparison site, the country was only second behind Brazil, with an average deforestation of 668,400 hectares (ha). With a difference of 2,84,400 hectares of forest loss between 1990 and 2020, India has seen the highest increase in deforestation.

While feeding livestock, growing trees in forest areas and felling trees for making products or furniture are considered major causes, felling of trees by governments and private individuals and agencies in the name of infrastructure projects, human habitation or industrial progress is also increasingly a major threat. concerns in the country. The activity takes place indiscriminately throughout the country, apart from a few incidents where courts intervened to put a stop to it.

Nevertheless, Utility Bidder’s assessment of India’s afforestation efforts by the central and state governments, despite increased deforestation, found that the country is committed to restoring its forests, with plans to restore more than 20 million hectares of land by 2030. the increasing felling of trees, you could call it a green massacre, has become a major concern. We need to cut back on the rate at which trees are cut down. A worrying example of this is the felling of trees

640 trees for construction of 11 km road in South Delhi Ridge. It caused an uproar among concerned citizens and even angered the country’s highest court.

Why should we even worry about deforestation, cutting down trees, etc.? This not only causes loss of habitat for wildlife, but also leads to soil deterioration and is also a major contributor to global warming. When forests are cut down, they release large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere – a greenhouse gas that accelerates climate change (the continued rise in Earth’s average temperature). The consequences include higher temperatures and longer periods of drought. We have just had another warmer summer. According to new data from the India Meteorological Department (IMD), India has experienced the highest number of heat wave days in the last three years. The country experienced 446 days of heat wave in different regions. In 2024, the number of heat wave days was the highest, with a record 125% increase in heat wave days in May and a 66% increase in April.

Heat waves take their toll on trees, leading to destruction of forests, including green cover in urban areas. In addition to our intimate connection with nature, there are storehouses of oxygen that provide sustenance to us and the animal world. A tree can produce up to 30,000 liters of oxygen during its lifetime, or an average of about 108 liters per year.

Loss of green cover reduces oxygen levels in the atmosphere. If the degradation is not contained, life on the planet will be at stake. Deforestation and burning of fossil fuels definitely cause a drop in oxygen levels. Urbanization and mining are other major causes. The human-induced extinction of forests or green habitats is faster and greater than the pressure on the climate. However, our indifference to the loss of green cover stems from the fact that there is no immediate threat on a large scale.