Which district in Nepal has the most forested land?

29 Jul 2018 - Namrata Karki

Forests are of great importance to any country. They contribute significantly to the environment, economic and social well being of the country. Owing to the numerous benefits and the products of the forests it can be easily stated that forests are one of the invaluable gifts of nature to humankind. They are an indispensable part of our earth’s ecological system.

A joint five-year survey conducted by the Department of Forest Research and Survey and the National Forest Products Survey Project in between 2067 to 2071 BS, shows that of the total 147,181 square kilometers area of Nepal, forest area makes up 44.74 percent. Of it, 40.36 percent is covered by forest and remaining 4.38 percent is scrubland. It is necessary for a developing country like Nepal to conserve its forest resources as forest plays a significant role in the development of a nation.

The top 10 list of districts with abundant forest land are as follows:

Districts                         Forested land (In square kilometres)

Kailali                            2008

Dang                              2007

Sankhuwasabha           1920

Surkhet                         1746

Sindhuli                         1668

Taplejung                      1577

Makwanpur                   1527

Udaypur                        1501

Bajhang                        1487

Doti                               1440

Top 10 list of districts with least amount of forest are as follows:

Districts              Forested land (In square kilometres)

Bhaktapur            25

Kathmandu         152

Parsa                   173

Jhapa                   177

Siraha                  181

Saptari                 204

Sunsari                 219

Mahottari             222

Lalitpur                245

Rupandehi           251