It was launched in 2000 as a centrally sponsored scheme by merging four (9th Plan) centrally sponsored afforestation schemes of the MoEFCC namely, Integrated Afforestation and Eco-Development Projects Scheme (IAEPS), Area Oriented Fuel wood and Fodder Projects Scheme (AOFFPS), Conservation and Development of Non-Timber Forest Produce including Medicinal Plants Scheme (NTFP) and Association of Scheduled Tribes and Rural Poor in Regeneration of Degraded Forests (ASTRP).
