- The proportion of land to be kept permanent under forests would naturally vary in different regions. Practical considerations suggest that India as whole, should aim at maintaining one-third of its total land area under forests. As an insurance against denudation a much larger percentage of the land about 60 per cent, should be kept under forests for their protective functions in the Himalayas, the Deccan and other mountainous tracts liable to erosion. In the plains, where the ground is flat and erosion is normally not a serious factor, the proportion to be attained should be placed at 20 per cent; and in view of the pressure of agriculture, effort at the extension of tree-lands should be concentrated on river banks and other convenient place not suitable for agriculture. At the same time it must be realised that even distribution of forests in all physical regions is as much important as its over all proportion. In certain localities deficient in forest, therefore, afforestation of marginal lands, and eroded river and village waste-lands, should be undertaken. Forests area in excess of the indicated proportion, if any, should, however, not be sacrificed. To maintain an overall average, it is essential that States better suited for the growth of trees should help to make good the deficiency in those parts where climatic and edaphic factors militate against tree growth.
