In a move that further weakens India’s forest conservation laws, the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) is all set to open up forests for commercial plantations by private and government entities without the requirement of a one-time monetary compensation, called net present value (NPV), and compensatory afforestation. Such plantations will now come under forestry activity.

This has been done through an amendment passed by the ministry on January 2, 2026, to the 2023 guidelines issued under the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, earlier known as the Forest Conservation Act (FCA). Calling the move “disastrous”, experts say this amendment gives state and private entities a free rein to establish commercial plantations in forest areas without the financial and environmental safeguards previously required.      

As per the amendment, such plantations have to be approved by working and management plans prepared by the respective state forest departments. The state government has been asked to devise a framework for “utilisation” and “revenue sharing” from plantations.

What triggered this amendment? 

The amendment was triggered by India's “increased dependence on imported pulp, paper, and paperboard”, following deliberations by a forest advisory committee under the ministry that met on December 2, 2025. 

In 2024-25, paper and paperboard imports had reached 2.05 million tonnes – a nearly two-fold jump from 1.08 million tonnes imported in 2020-21, said the Indian Paper Manufacturers Association (IPMA) in May 2025, citing data from the Ministry of Commerce.  

The MoEFCC had received requests from several government and private entities seeking permission to establish........

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