What is Forest Clearance?
Under the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam (formerly the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980), prior approval of the Central Government (MoEF&CC) is mandatory before any recorded forest land is diverted for a non-forest purpose — such as roads, highways, transmission lines, mining, industry, railways or airports.
When is it required?
- Use of any notified or recorded forest land for a non-forestry purpose
- Even temporary use of forest land during construction
- Renewal of leases or approvals involving forest land
- Clearing of naturally grown trees on forest land
The two-stage approval process
Proposals are filed and tracked online through the PARIVESH portal and move through two stages.
Stage-I — in-principle approval
The proposal is examined by the Divisional Forest Officer, the State Nodal Officer and the Regional Office / Regional Empowered Committee of MoEF&CC. If found suitable, in-principle (Stage-I) approval is granted with conditions — chiefly identification of land for Compensatory Afforestation and other safeguards.
Stage-II — final approval
After the user agency complies with the Stage-I conditions (transfer of land for afforestation, payment of levies and so on), Stage-II / final approval is issued and the forest land can be formally handed over.
Financial and compensatory obligations
- Compensatory Afforestation (CA) — afforestation over equivalent non-forest land, or double the area of degraded forest land
- Net Present Value (NPV) of the diverted forest, paid to compensate the loss of ecosystem services
- Site-specific costs such as wildlife management, soil and moisture conservation, and safety zones
Documents and data you will need
- DGPS survey and KML / SHP files of the forest area
- Land schedule and legal status of the land
- Site maps, toposheets and cadastral maps
- Species enumeration and tree count
- Project details, justification and site-inspection reports
Key takeaways
- Forest Clearance is mandatory before diverting forest land
- It is a two-stage process handled on PARIVESH
- Compensatory Afforestation and NPV are the main financial obligations
- Accurate DGPS survey data is critical to avoiding delays