ADILABAD: The erstwhile Adilabad district has recorded a steady decline in forest cover despite the previous government’s spending crores over the last decade on its Haritha Haram plantation drive. The latest India State of Forest Report (ISFR), released in September, attributes the loss to shifting (podu) cultivation, illegal tree felling and smuggling.
According to the Forest Survey of India, Adilabad lost 115.50 sq km of forest cover, Nirmal 45.37 sq km and Komaram Bheem Asifabad 44.61 sq km between 2022-23 and 2023-24. Mancherial, however, saw an increase of 34.96 sq km.
Dense forest cover now stands at 22.01 sq km in Adilabad, 57.74 sq km in Nirmal, 41.32 sq km in Asifabad and 28.42 sq km in Mancherial. Statewide, Telangana’s forest area is 21,179.04 sq km, reflecting a decline of 100.02 sq km, with Adilabad and Bhadradri Kothagudem registering the sharpest falls.
