The objective of the mission to be implemented by the environment ministry is to improve livelihood of three million forest dependant households and increase carbon sequestration of 50-60 million tonnes by 2020.

The mission is one of the eight missions under the National Action Plan on Climate Change announced by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in 2009 to help India fight climate change through adaptation and mitigation measures.

Over Rs. 46,000 crore will be spent through the mission in next 10 years, including existing funds available with the ministry for the forestry sector.

What is central to the new mission is the Forest Rights Act, environment minister Jairam Ramesh said. "FRA compliance as embodied in FRA 2006 has been made a precondition for release of funds to implementation agencies," said a presentation made to the Prime Minister's Council on Tuesday.

The mission will be implemented through committees set up by the Gram Sabha under the FRA. Even the 10 lakh revamped Forest Management Committees will be placed under the gram sabhas.

It is apparently for the first time that FRA implementation has been made must for an environment ministry programme.

The mission also aims to provide employment to youth from tribal and forest dwellers to be appointed as foresters through gram sabhas. These young foresters will help the state forest departments in implementing the mission.

The mission will have five sub-missions aims to provide alternate energy sources to villages, provide Rs. 15-20 lakh for each of 30,000 villages in forests, initiate programmes to end human animal conflict, promote community conservation of 14,000 sacred grooves and protect areas of hydrological importance.

The mission's outcome will be monitored through community participation and through satellite based systems, the minister said. Also, social audit as enforced in Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) is must for mission implementation.