- CAMPA funds power Gujarat’s biggest green reset in five years
- 1,33,666 hectares of degraded forest land brought back to life
- ₹67.30 crore MISHTI thrust strengthens mangrove shield
- Kachchh climate-resilience project gets ₹21.36 crore; Gujarat ‘moderately vulnerable’
NE ENVIRONMENT BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, JULY 31
A green revolution is taking root across Gujarat. From degraded forests sprouting back to life to mangroves strengthening the State’s coastal shield and climate-vulnerable communities gaining resilience, Gujarat’s ecological makeover has received a massive financial thrust, with ₹1,226.21 crore released under the National CAMPA over the last five years.
The green dividend is visible on the ground: 1,33,666 hectares of degraded forest land have been brought under restoration in Gujarat during the period.
The figures were disclosed by Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Kirti Vardhan Singh in the Rajya Sabha on July 30, 2026, in response to questions raised by Rajya Sabha MP Parimal Nathwani.
Gujarat’s green kitty has received additional boosts of ₹67.30 crore under the Mangrove Initiative for Shoreline Habitats and Tangible Incomes (MISHTI) and ₹7.43 crore under Nagar Van Yojana over the last five years.
The numbers underline a shift from conventional plantation drives to a broader ecological strategy encompassing forest regeneration, mangrove conservation, soil and moisture management, urban greenery and climate adaptation.
Forests get a new lease of life
The restoration of the 1,33,666 hectares has been undertaken through programmes including the Green India Mission (GIM) and National CAMPA, with the Centre extending technical guidance to States and Union Territories.
The restoration toolkit includes assisted natural regeneration, artificial regeneration, compensatory afforestation, soil and moisture conservation and plantation of suitable indigenous/native species, selected according to site-specific ecological conditions.
The emphasis is therefore not merely on adding trees but on reviving ecological functions and rebuilding resilient forest landscapes.
Kachchh gets ₹21.36-crore climate shield
Gujarat’s climate adaptation story is gaining another strong pillar in Kachchh.
Under the National Adaptation Fund for Climate Change (NAFCC), established in 2015 to support concrete adaptation activities in climate-vulnerable States and Union Territories, 30 projects have been sanctioned nationally, including a major Gujarat project.
The Kachchh initiative—“Climate Change Adaptation for natural resource dependent communities in Kachchh, Gujarat: Strengthening Resilience through Water & Livelihood Security and Ecosystem Restoration”—has received ₹21.36 crore.
The project seeks to knit together water security, livelihoods and ecosystem restoration, giving climate adaptation a community-centric thrust.
Gujarat has also received ₹12 lakh for revising its State Action Plans on Climate Change.
Science puts Gujarat’s climate risk on the map
The Department of Science and Technology has conducted a national-level study titled “Climate Vulnerability Assessment for Adaptation Planning in India using a Common Framework”, providing an indicator-based assessment of the relative vulnerability of States and districts to current climate risks.
DST has supported Gujarat’s State Climate Change Cells (SCCCs) in vulnerability and risk assessments, human-capacity building, public awareness and institutional-capacity building.
The assessment categorises Gujarat as ‘moderately vulnerable’ under the current climatic conditions.
With more than 1.3 lakh hectares of degraded forest land under restoration, fresh funding for mangroves and urban forests, and a dedicated climate-resilience project for Kachchh, Gujarat’s green drive is acquiring a larger canvas.
The message from the numbers is unmistakable: Gujarat’s next growth story may well be written not just in factories and infrastructure, but in forests, mangroves, water security and climate-resilient communities.
