India's 2030 Forest Restoration Goals: A Critical Review of Policies and Progress

ABSTRACT Land degradation affects billions of people worldwide and causes massive economic losses. India faces severe pressure from its rising population, urbanization, and climate change; hence committing to restore 26 million hectares of degraded land by 2030 under its Bonn challenge and UNCCD commitments. This review examines India's restoration policies, measures progress toward the 2030 target, and identifies key implementation challenges. It combines policy analysis and case studies of sites like the Aravali Biodiversity Park and Suryakunj. So far, the country has restored 18.94 Mha, which is roughly 73% of its 2030 goals. This has been achieved as a result of national level programmes like the Green India Mission, Twenty Point Program, and the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority. These have increased the forest cover by 15,891 km 2 from 2013 to 2021. However, significant challenges remain. Coordination between government agencies, funding delays, weak monitoring systems, and limited community involvement reduce program effectiveness. Many projects rely on fast‐growing non‐native trees that may harm biodiversity and soil health over time. Successful local examples show that community participation and native species produce better results. The study concludes that India can meet its 2030 restoration target but needs better coordination between programs, stronger community engagement, improved monitoring focused on ecological outcomes rather than just area covered, and wider use of ecosystem‐based approaches. Success depends on addressing implementation gaps while building on existing achievements rather than starting completely new approaches.