Primary Forest — Area in India

India: Primary Forest — Area was 11,904 1000 ha in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
11,904 1000 ha
Change on year
up 0.1%
World rank
18th
of 182 countries
All-time high
12,413 1000 ha
in 2015
All-time low
11,230 1000 ha
in 1990
Years of data
36
1990–2025

Primary Forest — Area in India, 1990–2025

02.5k5.0k7.5k10.0k12.5k1990200720251990: 11.2k 1000 ha1991: 11.3k 1000 ha1992: 11.4k 1000 ha1993: 11.4k 1000 ha1994: 11.5k 1000 ha1995: 11.5k 1000 ha1996: 11.6k 1000 ha1997: 11.7k 1000 ha1998: 11.7k 1000 ha1999: 11.8k 1000 ha2000: 11.9k 1000 ha2001: 11.9k 1000 ha2002: 11.9k 1000 ha2003: 12.0k 1000 ha2004: 12.0k 1000 ha2005: 12.0k 1000 ha2006: 12.1k 1000 ha2007: 12.1k 1000 ha2008: 12.1k 1000 ha2009: 12.1k 1000 ha2010: 12.2k 1000 ha2011: 12.2k 1000 ha2012: 12.3k 1000 ha2013: 12.3k 1000 ha2014: 12.4k 1000 ha2015: 12.4k 1000 ha2016: 12.3k 1000 ha2017: 12.2k 1000 ha2018: 12.1k 1000 ha2019: 12.0k 1000 ha2020: 11.9k 1000 ha2021: 11.9k 1000 ha2022: 11.9k 1000 ha2023: 11.9k 1000 ha2024: 11.9k 1000 ha2025: 11.9k 1000 ha

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in 1000 ha.

Analysis

India recorded 11,904 1000 ha for primary forest — area in 2025.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.1% on the previous year and down 4.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, primary forest — area in India peaked at 12,413 1000 ha in 2015 and was at its lowest, 11,230 1000 ha, in 1990.

India ranks 18th of 182 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.

Primary Forest — Area in India, year by year

Annual values for Primary Forest — Area in India, 1990 to 2025.
Year 1000 ha Change
1990 11,230 1000 ha —
1991 11,294 1000 ha +0.6%
1992 11,358 1000 ha +0.6%
1993 11,422 1000 ha +0.6%
1994 11,486 1000 ha +0.6%
1995 11,549 1000 ha +0.6%
1996 11,613 1000 ha +0.6%
1997 11,677 1000 ha +0.5%
1998 11,741 1000 ha +0.5%
1999 11,805 1000 ha +0.5%
2000 11,868 1000 ha +0.5%
2001 11,900 1000 ha +0.3%
2002 11,931 1000 ha +0.3%
2003 11,962 1000 ha +0.3%
2004 11,994 1000 ha +0.3%
2005 12,025 1000 ha +0.3%
2006 12,056 1000 ha +0.3%
2007 12,087 1000 ha +0.3%
2008 12,119 1000 ha +0.3%
2009 12,150 1000 ha +0.3%
2010 12,181 1000 ha +0.3%
2011 12,228 1000 ha +0.4%
2012 12,274 1000 ha +0.4%
2013 12,320 1000 ha +0.4%
2014 12,366 1000 ha +0.4%
2015 12,413 1000 ha +0.4%
2016 12,302 1000 ha -0.9%
2017 12,191 1000 ha -0.9%
2018 12,080 1000 ha -0.9%
2019 11,970 1000 ha -0.9%
2020 11,859 1000 ha -0.9%
2021 11,868 1000 ha +0.1%
2022 11,877 1000 ha +0.1%
2023 11,886 1000 ha +0.1%
2024 11,895 1000 ha +0.1%
2025 11,904 1000 ha +0.1%

India compared with similar countries

  • India's 11,904 1000 ha is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 413 1000 ha, 28.8× the median. (29 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 11,517 1000 ha 11,230 1000 ha 11,805 1000 ha 10
2000s 12,009 1000 ha 11,868 1000 ha 12,150 1000 ha 10
2010s 12,232 1000 ha 11,970 1000 ha 12,413 1000 ha 10
2020s 11,881 1000 ha 11,859 1000 ha 11,904 1000 ha 6

Countries ranked near India

  1. 15 China 12,953 1000 ha compare
  2. 15 China, mainland 12,953 1000 ha compare
  3. 17 Congo 12,931 1000 ha compare
  4. 19 Suriname 9,701 1000 ha compare
  5. 20 Guyana 9,477 1000 ha compare
  6. 21 Chile 8,928 1000 ha compare

See the full ranking of 213 places →

More environment data for India

All data for India →

Frequently asked questions

What is primary forest — area in India?
Primary forest — area in India was 11,904 1000 ha in 2025, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest primary forest — area recorded in India?
The highest recorded value was 12,413 1000 ha in 2015.
What is the lowest primary forest — area recorded in India?
The lowest recorded value was 11,230 1000 ha in 1990.
How does India rank for primary forest — area?
India ranks 18th out of 182 countries with data for 2025.
Is primary forest — area rising or falling in India?
Over the last ten years it is down 4.1%. 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, published as part of Primary Forest — Area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Primary Forest — Area in India. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 27 September 2026, from https://environment.statizoid.com/stat/primary-forest-area/india/

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About this data

Indicator
Primary Forest — Area
Unit
1000 ha
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
213 places, 7,478 data points, 1990–2025
Last refreshed

The FAOSTAT Land Use domain contains data on twenty-one land use categories and twenty-three categories of irrigation and agricultural practices. Data are available yearly and by country, regional and global levels. The domain includes Land Use Indicators providing information on the percentage share of agricultural and forest land, and their sub-components, including irrigated areas and areas under organic agriculture, within a country land use matrix. Data are available at country, regional and global level, for the following elements: (in percentage) i) Share in Land area; ii) Share in Agricultural land, iii) Share in Cropland; and iv) Share in Forest land; (in ha/pc) v) Area per capita.