Consider the following States: I. Chhattisgarh II. Madhya Pradesh III. Maharashtra IV. Odisha With reference to the States mentioned above, in terms of percentage of forest cover to the total area of State, which one of the following is the correct ascending order?

The correct answer is C, which gives the order Maharashtra (3), Madhya Pradesh (2), Odisha (4), Chhattisgarh (1).

The figures come from the India State of Forest Report (ISFR), published by the Forest Survey of India. In the 2019 edition, forest cover as a share of geographical area was roughly 20 per cent for Maharashtra, about 25 per cent for Madhya Pradesh, about 33 per cent for Odisha and about 44 per cent for Chhattisgarh.

• Maharashtra has the lowest share of the four. Its large total area dilutes the forest percentage.
• Madhya Pradesh has the largest forest area in absolute terms among the four, but not the highest percentage. That is why it sits second here.
• Odisha is above one-third of its area under forest cover.
• Chhattisgarh has the highest proportion, with forest cover well above two-fifths of the state.

This sits within the Geography segment on forest resources and Indian biogeography. For Mains, it links to tribal forest dependence in central and eastern India and to the debate on forest rights and mining in Chhattisgarh and Odisha.

Trap: Candidates rank states by absolute forest area and pick Madhya Pradesh as the highest. The question asks for percentage of total state area, so Madhya Pradesh falls below Odisha and Chhattisgarh.