As per the India State of Forest Report 2021, the forest cover in terms of vegetation cover is 16,654 square km, it is ________ percent of Rajasthan’s geographical area.
- (1)6.74
- (2)7.48
- (3)8.47
- (4)4.87
Answer
Why
Correct — option (4), 4.87.
The India State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2021 was prepared by the Forest Survey of India (FSI) and released on 13 January 2022. Its state table gives Rajasthan's forest cover as 16,655 sq km, rounded, and as 4.87 percent of the state's geographical area.
The percentage can be checked from the stem. The same table gives Rajasthan's geographical area as 3,42,239 sq km.
16,654 ÷ 3,42,239 = 0.04866
0.04866 × 100 = 4.866, which rounds to 4.87.
That forest cover is the sum of three canopy-density classes: very dense forest 78 sq km, moderately dense forest 4,369 sq km and open forest 12,208 sq km.
Forest cover is canopy mapped from satellite data, not the area recorded as forest land.
Why the others are wrong
- (1)6.74 — 6.74 percent of Rajasthan's 3,42,239 sq km would be about 23,067 sq km of forest cover.
That is well above the 16,654 sq km given in the stem, so 6.74 cannot be the share the stem describes.
- (2)7.48 — 7.48 percent of 3,42,239 sq km would be about 25,600 sq km, far more than the stem's 16,654 sq km.
The option reuses the digits of 4.87 in a different order, so it can look familiar; the division shows it does not fit.
- (3)8.47 — 8.47 percent of 3,42,239 sq km would be about 28,988 sq km, some 12,300 sq km more than the forest cover in the stem.
Like option (2), it rearranges the digits of 4.87. Dividing the stem's own figure by the state's area rules it out.
Concept
The Forest Survey of India maps forest cover every two years from satellite data. ISFR 2021 counts as forest cover all lands of more than 1 hectare with tree canopy density above 10 percent, including orchards, bamboo and palms, whether on recorded forest land, other government land, or private, community or institutional land.
Forest cover is split by canopy density: very dense forest (70 percent and above), moderately dense forest (40 to under 70 percent) and open forest (10 to under 40 percent). Scrub, forest land with canopy below 10 percent, is a separate class.
India's forest cover in ISFR 2021 is 7,13,789 sq km, or 21.71 percent of the country's geographical area.
RPSC's 2023 Prelims syllabus lists "Natural Vegetation & Soil" and "Biodiversity & its Conservation" under the Geography of Rajasthan. The extent and density of the state's forests fall under both heads.
In ISFR 2021, Rajasthan's forest cover rose by 25 sq km over the 2019 assessment, a change of 0.15 percent. The state also has 4,809 sq km of scrub, which sits outside the forest cover figure.
Forest cover and notified forest are different measures. Rajasthan's Economic Review 2022-23 puts notified forest at 32,864.62 sq km, 9.60 percent of geographical area, beside forest cover of 4.87 percent.
Key facts
- ISFR 2021 (released 13 January 2022) gives Rajasthan's forest cover as 16,655 sq km, 4.87% of its 3,42,239 sq km geographical area.
- Rajasthan's forest cover in ISFR 2021 by density class: very dense 78 sq km, moderately dense 4,369 sq km, open forest 12,208 sq km.
- ISFR 2021 records Rajasthan's forest cover up 25 sq km over ISFR 2019, and a further 4,809 sq km of scrub.
- ISFR canopy classes: very dense 70% and above; moderately dense 40% to under 70%; open forest 10% to under 40%; scrub is forest land below 10%.
- India's forest cover in ISFR 2021 is 7,13,789 sq km, 21.71% of the country's geographical area.
Only 4.87% returns the stem's 16,654 sq km. Area from ISFR 2021, Table 2.4.
Study next
Common traps
- Three options use the same digits, 4, 7 and 8. Divide the forest cover by the state's area instead of trusting a familiar-looking number.
- Forest cover (4.87%) and notified forest (9.60% in the Economic Review 2022-23) measure different things; one cannot stand in for the other.
- Scrub is not part of forest cover. Adding Rajasthan's 4,809 sq km of scrub to 16,655 sq km would inflate the share.
A question can give a forest area and ask for its share of the state's geographical area, as this one does.
A question can also ask for the density class with the largest area, the district with the most or least forest cover, or the change since the previous report.
Related PYQs
UnlockIAS will link similar questions from RAS Pre 2021 and 2016 here once those papers are published on this site.
Practice
- practice — not a real PYQ
According to the India State of Forest Report 2021, which canopy density class covers the largest area of Rajasthan's forest cover ?
- (a)Very dense forest
- (b)Moderately dense forest
- (c)Open forest
- (d)Scrub
Answer(3) — Open forest covers 12,208 sq km of Rajasthan's 16,655 sq km of forest cover. Option (2), moderately dense forest, covers 4,369 sq km, and option (1), very dense forest, 78 sq km. Option (4), scrub (4,809 sq km), is a separate class and not part of forest cover. - practice — not a real PYQ
As per the India State of Forest Report 2021, India's total forest cover is what percentage of the country's geographical area ?
- (a)21.71
- (b)24.62
- (c)33.00
- (d)4.87
Answer(1) — ISFR 2021 gives India's forest cover as 7,13,789 sq km, 21.71% of geographical area. Option (2), 24.62%, is forest and tree cover together, per the PIB release of 13 January 2022. Option (3), 33%, is the National Forest Policy 1988 goal for forest and tree cover. Option (4), 4.87%, is Rajasthan's figure.