The total forest cover in India is about 8 lakh sq km, which is 22% of the total geographical area of the country. , photo credit: AFP
The World Health Organization (WHO) states that since 1990, 420 million hectares of forests have been lost through conversion to other land uses – agriculture, industrial use and biofuels – to feed 11 billion humans by the end of this century. Has gone.
This will, in particular, affect tropical regions such as India, China and Africa.
due to global warming
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has published the Global Forest Resources Assessment, and states that 31% of the land on Earth is covered by forests. When trees are cut, they cause accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and hence global warming.
Deforestation leads to an 11% increase in global greenhouse gas emissions (CO 2CH 4Ann 2hey so 2and chlorofluorocarbons).
The Harvard University Public Health Group further states that deforestation leads to an increase in infectious germs such as malaria and dengue, which can have adverse effects on humans.
Dr. SB Kadrekar of Environmental Society of India explains that not only trees but also soil and water have to be saved. A 1% increase in deforestation leads to a 0.93% decrease in the availability of clean drinking water in rural communities that rely on open wells and flowing streams.
In addition, trees release water into the atmosphere during transpiration and it comes down as rain. Thus, deforestation has a dual effect. About 30% of the Earth’s land area (3.9 billion hectares) is covered by forests. Nevertheless, in the name of land use for food supply, developmental activities and technology, there is a lot of deforestation in many countries.
status in india
The total forest cover in India is about 8 lakh sq km, which is 22% of the total geographical area of the country. Of these, the twin islands of Andaman and Nicobar account for 87% of the total area.
Dr. Pankaj Sekhsaria points out that the colonial British established a port there to export timber elsewhere. The current government is also targeting these islands to expand its navy and attract more mainlanders to not only visit but even settle here. So much for saving these islands.
The Himalayan states of Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh have forest cover of 21,000, 24,000 and 16,000 km², respectively. Nevertheless, the Government of India has removed a significant portion of trees in these areas to build highway underpasses and overpasses.
Similarly, Goa has about 2,219 sq km of forests. Nevertheless, the government there has cut trees with the idea of connecting Mumbai to Goa with a four-lane highway. Around 31,000 trees are being cut by the local authorities.
giant banyan tree
Similarly, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is set to start the 45-km expansion of NH163 from two to four lanes. For this they want to destroy 9,000 banyan trees in Chevella mandal in Telangana.
These giant banyan trees are centuries old, having been established by the Nizams and other forest-loving groups.
In short, these are some of the bad effects of deforestation, and we should oppose it.