India is a very big country and it houses different types of forests and woodlands. These forests include protected forests or reserved forests. Prior to the independence of the country, the forests of the country were protected under the Indian Forest Act, 1927.

Following the freedom of the country, the Indian Government has preserved the status of the prevailing protected and reserved forests of the country. The protected forests of India can be broadly categorized into two types - undemarcated protected forests and demarcated protected forests and this categorization has been made on whether the boundaries of the forest have been delineated by an official declaration.

The abundant and varied flora and fauna of India are housed in 13 biosphere reserves, 89 national parks, and more than 400 wildlife sanctuaries located throughout the nation.

The different types of forests of India are classified below:

Tropical rainforests
Temperate deciduous forests
Himalayan subtropical pine forests
Indian tidal or mangrove forests
Indian dry deciduous forests
Humid deciduous forests of the Eastern Highlands
Dry evergreen forests of the East Deccan Region
Monsoon forests

Approximately 20% of the overall forest cover of India is located in the state of Madhya Pradesh. States like Maharashtra, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Arunachal Pradesh also house a considerable volume of forests.

The second biggest land use in the country after farming is forests. Forests encompass 67.83 million hectares of area in India which represents 20.64% of the nation's geographical territory, varying from the arid zone forests to Himalayan temperate forests.

Last Updated on 04 November 2011