India Eases Financial Burdens on Private Forest Plantations, Sparking Concerns
Environmental experts, however, warn that the move could weaken safeguards for forest conservation. Prakriti Srivastava, former principal chief conservator of forests in Kerala, said waiving NPV and compensatory afforestation would result in a loss of conservation funding and forest land. “Under the earlier provisions, leasing out forest land was considered a non-forestry activity, for which…