Share of land area that is protected in India
India: Share of land area that is protected was 7.7% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Share of land area that is protected in India, 2013–2025
Source: Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of total land area.
Analysis
India recorded 7.7% for share of land area that is protected in 2025. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.
The figure is up 28.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of land area that is protected in India peaked at 7.7% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 5.9%, in 2013.
That places India 169th out of 213 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.
Share of land area that is protected in India, year by year
| Year | % of total land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 5.9% | — |
| 2014 | 5.9% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 6.0% | +1.7% |
| 2016 | 6.0% | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 6.0% | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 6.0% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 6.0% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 6.0% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 7.5% | +25.0% |
| 2022 | 7.5% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 7.5% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 7.7% | +2.7% |
| 2025 | 7.7% | +0.0% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 7.7% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 18.8%, 41% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- India's 7.7% is below the median for South Asia, which is 15.7%, 49% of the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 6.0% | 5.9% | 6.0% | 7 |
| 2020s | 7.3% | 6.0% | 7.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near India
More reference data data for India
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 20.88 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 68.88 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 246.78 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 15.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 246.78 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 70.02 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 19.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 309.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1,063 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 85.03 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of land area that is protected in India?
- Share of land area that is protected in India was 7.7% in 2025, according to Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of land area that is protected recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 7.7% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of land area that is protected recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.9% in 2013.
- How does India rank for share of land area that is protected?
- India ranks 169th out of 213 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of land area that is protected rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is up 28.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from Protected Planet WDPA and WD-OECM data, UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of land area that is protected. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Terrestrial protected areas are areas of at least 1,000 hectares that are designated by national authorities in order to preserve their ecosystem services and cultural values.