Jammu and Kashmir forest land diversion and wildlife crime data released by India

The Indian Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change reported that between April 1 2023 and March 31 2026, 729.14 hectares of forest land in Jammu and Kashmir were approved for diversion to non‑forestry uses, accounting for about 1.03 % of the national total of 71,023.30 hectares. Ladakh recorded only 0.94 hectares. Across Union Territories, Jammu and Kashmir had the highest diversion area.

In a separate reply, the ministry said Jammu and Kashmir logged 13 organised wildlife‑crime cases from 2021 to 2025, with two cases in 2021 and one in 2022 and none reported thereafter. The state forest department listed 10 wildlife‑crime incidents in 2021, with no cases in the following four years. These figures were supplied by Minister of State Kirti Vardhan Singh in answers to Lok Sabha questions.

Both datasets were presented to the Lok Sabha, highlighting the region's forest‑land use changes and a sharp decline in reported wildlife‑crime incidents after 2021.