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Gujarat Expands Green Cover with Ahmedabad Leading

Source:timesofindia-indiatimes ↗

Why It Matters

Important for tracking Gujarat's environmental statistics, urban forestry management, and climate change mitigation efforts relevant to state-level administrative exams.

Summary

Ahmedabad has emerged at the forefront as Gujarat successfully expands its green cover across 1,526 hectares through intensive afforestation and urban forestry programs, contributing to ecological sustainability and climate resilience.

Key Points

  • Ahmedabad led Gujarat's recent green cover expansion, adding significantly to the state's afforestation targets.
  • A total of 1,526 hectares of green cover was expanded across various districts in Gujarat, highlighting urban and rural forestry initiatives.
  • The initiative aims to combat climate change, mitigate urban heat island effects, and enhance biodiversity.

Important Terms

Gujarat Forest Department

The nodal state-level agency responsible for forest conservation, wildlife management, afforestation programs, and expanding the state's green cover in alignment with ecological targets.

UPSC context

GPSC Paper 3 / Environment and Ecology: Tests understanding of state-level institutional mechanisms for afforestation, biodiversity preservation, and climate resilience policies.

Source
Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority

A statutory urban planning body tasked with the orderly development, infrastructure expansion, and micro-urban afforestation (such as Miyawaki forests) in the Ahmedabad metropolitan region.

UPSC context

GPSC Paper 1 / Geography of Gujarat & Urban Governance: Tests knowledge of urban planning authorities and municipal strategies for mitigating the urban heat island effect.

Source

Static Concepts Connected

Environment and Ecology

What are the key objectives and components of the National Afforestation Programme (NAP) in India?

  • Nodal Ministry: Implemented by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change via the National Afforestation and Eco-Development Board.
  • Institutional Setup: Decentralized forest management through Joint Forest Management Committees (JFMCs) at the village level and Forest Development Agencies (FDAs) at the forest division level.
  • Core Objective: Aims to regenerate degraded forest lands, expand tree cover, and concurrently improve the livelihoods of fringe forest communities.

Cross-Topic Patterns

  • Urban Forestry and 74th Amendment Governance

    Urban afforestation intersects with urban governance and municipal planning under the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act, linking ecological resilience with local body responsibilities.

Urban heat island mitigation and afforestation metrics in Gujarat frequently appear as matching or statement-based questions in GPSC Prelims.

Linked PYQs · 2

Linked PYQs · 2

  • 2026GPSC_PRELIMSGS1

    The 'Great Indian Bustard (GIB)' (Ghorad) is frequently seen in the news in the context of wildlife conservation efforts in western India. Consider the following statements regarding this species: 1. Currently, the highest surviving wild population of the Great Indian Bustard in India is located in the semi-arid grasslands of Gujarat. 2. It is a long-distance migratory bird that travels from Central Asia to the Indian subcontinent to escape harsh winters. Which of the above statement(s) is/are correct?

  • 2025GPSC_PRELIMSGS1

    In which state was the 'Mahabharata Vatika' featuring 37 plant species mentioned in the 'Mahabharata', set up for plant conservation?