Replying to a question, Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said as per India State of Forest Report 2013, the total forest cover in the country is 697,898 sq km, which is 21.23 per cent of the total geographical area of the country.
"There is a net increase of 5871 sq km in the forest cover of the country as compared with India State of Forest Report 2011," he said.
Nagaland, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Tripura, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Maharashtra and Andaman and Nicobar Islands have reported decline in forest cover due to encroachment, open cast mining, drying up of mangroves after tsumani and shifting cultivation practices.