The committee for wildlife safety held a meeting on April 20 under the chairmanship of the State Forests and Environment Minister on measures to tackle forest fire.
The increasing incidence of forest fire not only damages the vast biological resources of the State but also causes permanent damages to water resources of the region. Similarly, the carbon and other dust particles it emits lead to severe atmospheric pollution.
If the biosphere is sick, the entire human race will fall sick. So the biosphere has to be maintained healthy for the wellbeing of all creatures.
The committee made the Divisional Forest Officer of respective Forest Division responsible for the incidences of forest fire. But the State administration should know that the fire within the forest land is always deliberate and manmade. The forest fire is related to socio-economic conditions of the State. If we want to solve the problem of forest fire in our State, we must look upon the socio-economic problems of the forest dwellers. So, all the DFOs, irrespective of territorial, wildlife and Kendu leaf divisions, should be held responsible for forest fires within their jurisdiction. Similarly, the Regional Chief Conservators of the respective Forest Region should also be held responsible for forest fire in their respective jurisdiction. Again when the forest fire is always related to socio-economic problems of the State, the respective district Collector and the Superintendent of Police also are to be made responsible to some extent.
The public funds spent on different State developmental works are siphoned off by the public servants concerned and very meager amount is spent on ground. So, the forest dwellers, who generally depend on wage from forest works especially in raising plantations and fire fighting operations, set fire to the forests. For these people are not duly paid. The unscrupulous Government employees, who generally want to suppress their crime, also are responsible for the forest fire.
The forest dwellers set the fire to forest for preparation of land for farming. This is mostly happening in almost all the forest divisions. The cultivation of Ganja is rampant now-a-days. It should be a major issue for discussion in the district level meeting in each month and responsibility should be fixed. There must be joint patrol of forests and excise officials during fire season not just to contain fire but to prevent Ganja cultivation. This is the period, when the ground is prepared for sowing Ganja seeds, which is a major cause of making the youngsters wayward. It is needless to say that the cultivation of cannabis is going on in the State and in the neighbouring States in large patches of land in the forest areas. The cultivation is also promoted by vested interests.
It is learnt that, there is no fire incidences within the forests of Mayurbhanja and Phulbani due to active participation of local people of the two districts. If so, then the administrations of other districts should take appropriate steps to win the hearts of the people, particularly of forest dwellers and forest dependants, through economic support.
Without people’s participation and cooperation, no public undertaking will be successful. So, the Government machinery should involve the people in all social tasks and responsibilities. It is a good sign that the State Government has recommended Hadagada Sanctuary to be included within the Project Tiger of Similipal hills. The Hadagad Sanctuary, whose geographical area is 191.60 sqkm, comes under the revenue district of Keonjhar, whereas the Similipal forest, especially of Similipal Sanctuary consisting of 2,200 sqkm of geographical areas, comes under the revenue district of Mayurbhanj. The whole area of both the sanctuaries will come to 2,391.60 sqkm.
The writer served for many years in both Similipal and Keonjhar forests. The forests of both the revenue districts are very much popular for royal tigers and its prey animals. Due to indiscriminate mining operations, the rich biodiversity of the two districts have been lost. The hill ranges of both the revenue districts are part of Eastern Ghat hill ranges. Similarly, the forests of Rairangpur revenue sub-division also are lost due to mining operations. These areas are very much prone to animal poaching and smuggling of timber and other forest products. Besides, forest lands have been encroached upon to a vast extent in these two districts.
Fire is a common phenomenon in the area, which is mostly deliberate. The whole area of the hill tracts is the fountain head of various perennial and semi-perennial rivers, and rivulets like Budhabalanga, Salandi, Vandana, Khairi, Palapula etc, including waterfalls of Barehipani and Joranda. The regional climates of the regions are generally influenced by the eastern fringes of Eastern-Ghat hill ranges. Due to repeated forest fires, the degradation of ecological systems of this region has been going on non-stop. The loss of forest invites heavy floods in the coastal plains.
The committee recommended for construction of jetties at Gupti and Talchua within the Bhitarkanika Sanctuary. Jetties are masonry structures along the sea-shores to break the water and provide strong resting foundation. Such infrastructure can be utilized for prevention of illegal fishing within the ban period and within the non-permissible zones of fish harvesting.
Similarly, the protection of the estuarine ecological systems can be ensured through the jetties. In the current years, the mass nesting of Olive-Ridley sea turtles was erratic on the banks of Rushikulya and Gahirmatha. The reptiles in general do not tolerate interferences of any kind in their habitats. But there are too much of interference by fishing trawlers in the sea, while such reptiles come ashore for egg laying. Such unlawful activities of fishing trawlers can be stopped with the construction of the jetties and by cooperation of the local people.
(The writer is a former senior forest officer and an environmentalist. Tel no 9937460649)