World Environmnet Day is just around the corner and it is extremely sad to observe how forest fires have been raging, like every year, in the forests of the mountain state of Uttarakhand. Come summer and the forests of Uttarakhand become vulnerable to this dreaded phenomenon.
The fires usually break out between March and June (fire season) in the coniferous chir pine forests in the 1000-1800 metres altitude range, with many of them caused by human interference in the forests.
This year too, forest fires have been raging in thousands of hectares in the State. In Tehri forest area, fire fighting is underway. It has been very hot these last few days. Some relief in the form of rain is expected shortly.
However, the temperatures will again soar after that. A permanent solution is needed for these fires rather than just waiting for rain to put them out.High temperatures, less moisture and chir pine needles together contribute to these fires.The attitude of the community is largely indifferent. Making every person aware and educating them about the fires is a tough job. Not all the fires are in the reserved forests. They occur in civil forests and also in Van Panchayat areas. But in any case, it is the forest department which has to fight these fires. Pine needles in the Chir Pine forests get deposited in large quantities and work as a fire load. Sometimes, villagers want to clear the cattle paths amid pine forests. The population as well as cattle population has increased and many roads and paths have also come up near the forests. All this has increased the incidence of forest fires.
A senior forester said that while some fires were accidental (for instance, someone throwing a cigarette or bidi), most of the fires were intentional, caused by people in and around forest areas.”After the fires, the grass grows better and the villagers get good fodder for their cattle. Pine needles get burnt and the grass gets a chance to come out better,” he said requesting anonymity. Crew stations and control rooms have been set up but much more needs to be done at all levels to mitigate this monstrous problemAnother senior forester believes that villagers were the main cause of forest fires and no strict action was taken against them for “political reasons”. “If their fodder rights are suspended for some time, they will never indulge in such mischief,” he said.
Most of the fires take place in the pine forests but as these bring in crores of rupees in revenue from the“lisa “(resin), the Government has no plans to replace them with other species.
While forest authorities often accuse villagers of deliberately setting fire to the forests, villagers and environment activists say the fires are allowed to get out of control by forest authorities who misuse funds for afforestation and find the fire a convenient excuse.
Foresters and environment experts have often advocated that the Government declare forest fires as a natural disaster like earthquakes and landslides.
Forest fires, a frequent phenomenon in Uttarakhand, lead to widespread destruction every summer and experts feel that if the government includes it in the category of natural disaster, it would become easier to plan ways and means to check these fires and monitor their causes and occurrence.
Experts opine that the central Government should formulate a national policy which would help check forest fires and also help framing a proper compensation system in case of forest fires.
They are all of the view that forest fires must be declared by the centre as a natural disaster like earthquakes and landslides.Some experts are of the view that there is a need for training military and para-military forces to help check and control forest fires.
Whatever the approach the State Government takes, it is high time that serious measures are taken to prevent or reduce the loss to the precious biodiversity of the mountain state due to these widespread fires.
Somehow, there seems to be an impression that the authorities do not take these fires as seriously as they should.
It must not be allowed to become a normal occurrence every summer. Preparations to deal with them need to be well in place before the fire season gets underway.