Question 1

Green Credits for tree plantation can be claimed immediately after planting the saplings.

Accepted Answer

Under the revised methodology, credits can only be claimed after five years of survival and upon achieving a minimum 40% canopy density.

Question 2

Companies can trade their generated Green Credits on an open carbon-like market for profit.

Accepted Answer

The August 2025 rules made tree-plantation Green Credits strictly non-tradable and non-transferable, except within a holding company's subsidiaries.

Question 3

Consider the following statements regarding the revised Green Credit Programme (GCP) methodology for tree plantation (August 2025):
1. Credits are awarded at the rate of one Green Credit per surviving tree only after achieving a minimum 60% canopy density.
2. The generated Green Credits are non-tradable and can only be exchanged once for compliance or CSR obligations.
3. The Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) acts as the Administrator for the Green Credit Programme.
How many of the above statements are correct?

Accepted Answer

(b) Only two — Statement 1 is incorrect because the required minimum canopy density is 40%, not 60%. Statement 2 is correct; the 2025 revision removed the open-market tradability of these credits and made them single-use. Statement 3 is correct; ICFRE is the designated administrator for the GCP under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

Question 4

Match the following features with their respective Green Credit plantation guidelines:
List I (Feature)
A. Minimum requirement for credit claim
B. Transferability of credits
C. Certification entity
D. Credit valuation metric

List II (Guideline provision)
1. Number of surviving trees after 5 years
2. Designated third-party agencies
3. 40% canopy density
4. Permitted only between a holding company and its subsidiary

Select the correct code:

Accepted Answer

(a) A-3, B-4, C-2, D-1 — A matches 3 (Minimum requirement is achieving 40% canopy density). B matches 4 (Credits are non-transferable except between a holding company and its subsidiaries). C matches 2 (Evaluated and verified through designated agencies). D matches 1 (1 credit per surviving tree after 5 years).

Question 5

Assertion (A): The 2025 revision of the Green Credit methodology removed the uniform requirement of planting 1,100 trees per hectare.
Reason (R): High-density plantations of 1,100 trees per hectare were found to be ecologically unsuitable for all landscapes, particularly natural grasslands and savannahs.
Select the correct answer:

Accepted Answer

(a) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A — The initial 2024 notification mandated 1,100 trees per hectare. Ecologists criticized this because imposing such dense tree plantation on natural degraded landscapes like grasslands destroys local ecosystems and grazing patterns. Consequently, the 2025 notification removed this rigid density rule and shifted the focus to outcome-based canopy density (40%), making both the assertion and reason correct and properly linked.

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