Amendment status not verified — confirm the current text below against the official source.
(i) Compensatory afforestation shall be done over equivalent area of non-forest land. (ii) As far as possible, the non-forest land for compensatory afforestation should be identified contiguous to or in the proximity of Reserved Forest or Protected Forest to enable the Forest Department to effectively manage the newly planted area. (iii) Where non-forest land of compensatory afforestation is not available in the same district, non-forest land for compensatory afforestation may be identified anywhere else in the State/UT as near as possible to the site of diversion, so as to minimise adverse impact on the micro-ecology of the area. (iv) Where non-forest lands are not available or non-forest land is available in less extent to the forest area being diverted, compensatory afforestation may be carried out over degraded forest twice in extent to the area being diverted or to the difference between forest land being diverted and available non-forest land, as the case may be. (v) The non-availability of non-forest land for compensatory afforestation would be accepted by the Central Government only on the Certificate from the Chief Secretary to the State/UT Government to that effect. (vi) As an exception to 3.2(i) above, compensatory afforestation may be raised over degraded forest land twice in extent of the forest area being diverted/dereserved in respect of following types of proposals:- (a) For extraction of minor minerals from the river beds. (However, if forest area to be diverted is above 500 hectares, compensatory afforestation over equivalent area of degraded forest shall be required to be done instead of twice the area being diverted subject to a minimum of 1000 hectares compensatory afforestation). (b) For construction of link roads, small water works, minor irrigation works, school building, dispensaries, hospital, tiny rural industrial sheds of the Government or any other similar work excluding mining and encroachment cases, which directly benefit the people of the area- in hill districts and in other districts having forest area exceeding 50% of the total geographical area, provided diversion of forest area does not exceed 20 hectares. (c) For laying of transmission lines up to 220 K.V. (d) For mulberry plantation undertaken for silk-worm rearing without any felling of existing trees. (e) For diversion of linear or 'strip' plantation declared as protected forest along the road/rail/canal sides for widening or expansion of road/rail/canal. (vii) No compensatory afforestation shall be insisted upon in respect of the following:- (a) For clearing of naturally grown trees in forest land or in portion thereof for the purpose of using it for reforestation. (b) Proposals involving diversion of forest land up to one hectare. (However, in such cases, plantation of ten times the number of trees likely to be felled will have to be carried out by way of compensatory afforestation or any number of trees specified in the order). (c) For underground mining in forest land below 3 metres. (However, in respect of forest area required for surface right compensatory afforestation shall be required as per relevant provisions). (d) Cases of renewal of mining lease except in respect of forest area proposed to be freshly broken up for which compensatory afforestation shall be required to be undertaken on equivalent non-forest land.