Question

Why has the National Forest Commission of India recommended a relatively larger forest cover for hills than for plains?

Answer 1

$\text{National forest policy}$

The forest cover recommended by the National Forest Policy (1988) of India is 33 per cent for the plains and 67 per cent for the hills.

$\text{Reasons for larger forest cover on the hills}$

The National Forest Commission of India recommended a relatively larger forest cover for hills than for plains pertaining to the following reasons:-

• Since water and air can easily erode the topsoil layer in the absence of trees, hence, loss of forest cover results in soil erosion. This process accelerates in hilly areas due to the prevailing slopes, subsequently resulting in landslides and flash floods.
• The eroded soil is carried by the running river waters and gets deposited in the rivers and reservoirs depending on flow. This reduces the water storage capacity of the reservoirs and causes the rivers to change their course.
• Hilly areas have high biodiversity compared to plains which inhabit the forests.
• Also, much of the hilly areas are occupied by nomadic people who depend on forest resources to earn a livelihood and practice slash and burn agriculture. This considerably hampers the forest cover.

Therefore, it was recommended to have more forest cover in hilly areas than plains.