Global Forest Resources Assessment 2025

The Global Forest Resources Assessment (GFRA) 2025 by the Food and Agriculture Organization reports that the world has about 4.14 billion hectares of forest, covering nearly 32% of the Earth’s land area, which equals roughly 0.5 hectares of forest per person globally. India possesses around 72.7 million hectares of forest area, accounting for about 2% of the world’s total forest cover. Globally, Europe holds the largest share of forest area (about 25%), while South America has the highest proportion of forest cover relative to land area (around 49%), and more than 54% of the world’s forests are concentrated in five countries—the Russia, Brazil, Canada, the United States, and China.

In India, forests are classified into major types based on climate, rainfall, altitude, and dominant vegetation, reflecting the country’s ecological diversity. The major forest types include:

Tropical Evergreen and Semi-Evergreen Forests – Found in high rainfall regions such as the Western Ghats, Northeast India, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands; these forests remain green throughout the year and include species like rosewood and ebony.

Tropical Deciduous Forests – The most widespread forests in India, also called monsoon forests, occurring in regions receiving 70–200 cm rainfall and divided into moist and dry deciduous types.

Tropical Thorn Forests – Found in arid and semi-arid regions receiving less than 50 cm rainfall, particularly in areas such as Rajasthan, Haryana, and Gujarat, with species like babool and khejri.

Montane Forests – Occur in mountainous regions where vegetation changes with altitude, including forests in the Himalayas and southern hill ranges.

Littoral and Swamp Forests – Found along coastal and wetland regions, including mangrove ecosystems such as the Sundarbans and lagoon ecosystems like Chilika Lake.

This classification highlights how India’s forest diversity is shaped by variations in rainfall, altitude, and coastal influences, making it one of the most ecologically varied forest systems in the world.