However, on private lands, the land owners are responsible for planting and nurturing the saplings that will be provided free of cost by the forest department,' the minister added.

These schemes would ensure 100 percent participation of the locals in raising new herbal forests, he said. 'We intend to re-green 2,500 hectares of forest land this year.'

Additional Chief Secretary Avay Shukla, who is associated with the programme, said the aim of such programmes was to motivate the common man to know the importance of commercially valuable species. He said peepal and banyan trees, whose numbers have declined massively over the recent years, would be planted in 3,057 villages under the plantation drive.

The state already has a quarter of its geographical area under forest cover.

The hill state is most vulnerable to climate change as the Himalayan glaciers have been retreating due to global warming.

As per the forests department, Himachal Pradesh has 37,033 sq km forest area out of which 1,896 sq km is reserve forest.

The lush green valleys and snow-capped mountains of the state are home to 36 percent of the country's species of birds. Of the 1,228 species that have been reported in India, 447 have been recorded in this state alone.

Similarly, 77 species of mammals have been recorded by the Himachal State Council for Science, Technology and Environment in its biodiversity report.