Forest cover in country increases by 5,188 sq km

The total tree and forest cover in the country increased by 5,188 square kilometre in the last two years, said the India State of Forest Report 2019 which was released on Monday by Union Minister Prakash Javadekar.

While releasing the report, Javadekar said that there is an increase of 42.6 million tonnes in the carbon stock of the country as compared to the last assessment of 2017.

"This report gives us confidence that we are on track to achieve our Paris Agreement goals," he said.

He also said that the current assessment shows a decrease of forest cover to the extent of 765 sq km (0.45 per cent) in north east India region.

Except Assam and Tripura, all states in the region show decrease in forest cover.

The mangrove cover in the country has increased by 54 sq km (1.10 per cent) as compared to the previous assessment, he said.