Concerns Raised Against Green Credit Programme (GCP) rolled out by the Ministry of Environment | Current Affairs | Vision IAS
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Concerns Raised Against Green Credit Programme (GCP) rolled out by the Ministry of Environment

Posted 03 Apr 2025

Updated 04 Apr 2025

2 min read

 

The GCP is a mechanism to encourage voluntary plantation, resulting in award of Green Credits and build an inventory of degraded land which can be utilised for Afforestation programmes.

  • Despite its ambitious goals, the programme has faced legal scrutiny and environmental criticisms.

Criticism & Controversies of Green Credit Programme

  • Lack of Legal Foundation: The Environment Protection Act, 1986 (under which the Rules were notified) does not provide a legal framework for tradable green credits for compensatory afforestation.
  • Environmental Criticisms
    • Incentivizes forest diversion: Companies can buy credits instead of restoring forests, weakening environmental safeguards.
    • Degraded lands at risk: The GCP promotes plantations on open forests, scrublands, and wastelands, which already provide unique ecological benefits.
    • No real addition to forest cover: Unlike compensatory afforestation (which requires converting non-forest land into forests), GCP allows existing degraded forest land to be used, meaning no net gain in forest area.
      • It contradicts the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 2023, which mandates land-for-land compensatory afforestation.
    • Evaluation and Long-term Sustainability: The GCP methodology lacks clear criteria for evaluating plantation success, especially tree survivability, allowing failed plantations to still earn credits.
  • Tags :
  • Green Credit Programme
  • Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 2023,
  • The Environment Protection Act, 1986
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