Province of Nepal
Sudur Paschim Province: land cover, map and districts
Forest land is the largest land cover in Sudur Paschim Province, at 43.4% of its area. Forest covers 43.4% (about the same as the national 41.4%), farmland 7.9%, rangeland 36.8%, built-up land 3.8%, bare land, rock and snow 7.4% and water 0.6%.
Land cover of Sudur Paschim Province
Show the numbers
| Class | Share (%) | 95% interval | Area (km²) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Urban land | 3.8 | 1.9–5.8 | 759 |
| Agriculture land | 7.9 | 5.0–10.9 | 1,563 |
| Rangeland | 36.8 | 32.5–41.1 | 7,267 |
| Forest land | 43.4 | 37.8–49.1 | 8,575 |
| Water | 0.6 | 0.3–0.9 | 120 |
| Barren land | 7.4 | 4.3–10.6 | 1,462 |
Latest high-resolution imagery (captured 2011–2026, median 2025-11). Estimated from 134 randomly placed 1.2 km sample windows classified by the Nepal-adapted U-Net; intervals are 95% confidence. How it works.
Sudur Paschim Province year by year
Largest changes in the reference map from 2017 to 2025: urban land +2.1 points, agriculture land −1.9 points, barren land −0.3 points.
Coloured lines: the U-Net on each year's Sentinel-2 cloudless mosaic, with 95% intervals. Grey: the independent 10 m Impact Observatory map at the same sites. Differences of a few points between years can come from how each year's mosaic was processed, and the 2016 and 2018 mosaics are read less reliably (too little built-up land, too much bare land and water); compare from 2019 on.
Districts of Sudur Paschim Province
| District | Area (km²) | Forest % | Farmland % | Built-up % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Achham | 1,700 | 43.0 | 0.8 | 2.2 |
| Baitadi | 1,493 | 32.1 | 1.7 | 1.8 |
| Bajhang | 3,459 | 27.3 | 0.0 | 0.2 |
| Bajura | 2,298 | 34.8 | 0.2 | 1.5 |
| Dadeldhura | 1,502 | 70.2 | 0.9 | 0.3 |
| Darchula | 2,340 | 32.6 | 0.2 | 0.7 |
| Doti | 2,050 | 68.8 | 0.1 | 1.0 |
| Kailali | 3,286 | 56.8 | 21.6 | 12.5 |
| Kanchanpur | 1,618 | 32.6 | 48.9 | 12.5 |
Fires in Sudur Paschim Province each year
Satellite fire detections (NASA FIRMS, VIIRS S-NPP) inside Sudur Paschim Province: about 5,680 a year on average, most in 2016 (13,324).
Questions about Sudur Paschim Province
- What is the forest cover of Sudur Paschim Province?
- About 43.4% of Sudur Paschim Province is forest (95% interval 37.8–49.1%), roughly 8,575 km², according to the Nepal-adapted U-Net applied to 134 sample sites. That ranks 3rd of 7 provinces.
- How much of Sudur Paschim Province is built-up or urban?
- Built-up land covers about 3.8% (759 km²). Sudur Paschim Province ranks 5th of 7 provinces for built-up share.
- How big is Sudur Paschim Province?
- Sudur Paschim Province covers 19,744 km² and has 9 districts.
Source: Nepal-adapted U-Net (Khadka & Pradhan 2026) on Esri and EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless imagery; Impact Observatory/Esri 10 m land cover; boundaries: Survey Department of Nepal via OCHA.