CCEA approved National Mission for Green India

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved a National Mission for a Green India on 20 February 2014. The Green India Mission (GIM) aims to improve and increase India’s diminishing forest cover.

The GIM scheme envisages a total cost of 46000 crore rupees over the next 10 years. The GIM is one of eight missions under the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC).

The mission has following objectives:

•    To increase forest cover on 5 million hectares (ha) of forest/non-forest land.
•    To improve the quality of forest cover on another 5 million hectare.
•    To enhance annual CO2 sequestration.
•    To improve the livelihoods of about 3 million households living in and around forest areas.
•    To respond to climate change by a combination of adaptation and mitigation measures.
•    To improve entire ecosystem and increase forest-based livelihood income for 30 lakh forest dependent households.

The GIM will be converged with the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, Compensatory Afforestation Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA), and National Afforestation Programme.

Funding for the GIM will come from the Plan outlay. The Union government will provide 90 percent of the funds for implementing the scheme in the north-eastern states, and 75 percent of the funds for other states. State governments will meet the balance requirement.

The mission will involve grassroots-level organizations including gram sabhas (village councils) and joint forest management committees (JFMCs). A governing council chaired by the environment minister and a national executive council chaired by the environment secretary at the national level will facilitate implementation of the mission.