Annual deforestation as a share of forest area in India
India: Annual deforestation as a share of forest area was 0.8% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Annual deforestation as a share of forest area in India, 1990–2020
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2020, annual deforestation as a share of forest area in India stood at 0.8%.
The figure is down 15.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual deforestation as a share of forest area in India peaked at 1.0% in 2010 and was at its lowest, 0.6%, in 1990.
That places India 21st out of 105 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top quarter.
Annual deforestation as a share of forest area in India, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 0.6% | — |
| 2000 | 0.9% | +55.1% |
| 2010 | 1.0% | +3.3% |
| 2015 | 0.9% | -2.8% |
| 2020 | 0.8% | -13.0% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 0.8% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.3%, 2.5× the median. (22 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.6% | 1 |
| 2000s | 0.9% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 1 |
| 2010s | 0.9% | 0.9% | 1.0% | 2 |
| 2020s | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 1 |
Countries ranked near India
More environment data for India
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 11.05 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 12.52 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.254 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 0.954 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 3.92 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 1.12 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual deforestation as a share of forest area in India?
- Annual deforestation as a share of forest area in India was 0.8% in 2020, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual deforestation as a share of forest area recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 1.0% in 2010.
- What is the lowest annual deforestation as a share of forest area recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.6% in 1990.
- How does India rank for annual deforestation as a share of forest area?
- India ranks 21st out of 105 countries with data for 2020.
- Is annual deforestation as a share of forest area rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is down 15.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual deforestation as a share of forest area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 5 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Annual deforestation as share of forest area represents the yearly percentage of forest area lost due to deforestation relative to the total forest area.