54,800 hectares of forest cover destroyed by wildfires in Uttarakhand since 2000 - Hindustan Times
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54,800 hectares of forest cover destroyed by wildfires in Uttarakhand since 2000

Mar 10, 2023 04:43 PM IST

The state however, did report an all-time low damage due to forest fires during the Covid pandemic with 172 hectares of jungles getting damaged in 2020

Forest fires in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand continues to damage the green cover affecting over 54,801 hectares of land, the state’s forest department data revealed.

This year, over 109 hectares of forests have been damaged in the state so far. (HT file photo)
This year, over 109 hectares of forests have been damaged in the state so far. (HT file photo)

The state did report an all-time low damage due to forest fires during the Covid pandemic with 172 hectares of jungles getting damaged in 2020.

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However, the damage prior to the pandemic, remained on the higher side.

In pre-Covid 2019, as much as 2,981 hectares of forest cover was affected, while in 2021 and 2022, around 3,576 and 3,425 hectares of forests was damaged respectively.

Also Read:964 locations, 40 active spots: All you need to know about Uttarakhand forest fire

This year, over 109 hectares of forests have been damaged in the state so far, even as most of the forest fires are reported in peak months of May and June.

The comparison of the forest fire damage in the month of February for the last five years also shows a rise in the forest fires, with the state reporting damage to 28.5 hectares in 2018, no damage in 2019, 2.5-hectare damage in 2020, 77.15-hectare damage in 2021 and 3.25-hectare damage in 2022.

This year, around 60 hectares have been damaged in the month of February.

Overall, this year, the state has reported 68 forest fire incidents in which 109.75 hectares of forest land have been damaged.

Of these 109.75 hectares, 43.1 hectares were damaged in the Garhwal region, 35 hectares in Kumaon region and 31.02 hectares in the administrative wildlife regions

Nishant Verma, nodal officer for forest fires in the state forest department said that with rise in forest fires after an all-time low in 2020, the state forest department has decided to study all the factors including Covid which led to a record reduction in the forest fires in state.

“We are trying to look into all the factors that led to record reduction in forest fires including environmental factors, restricted movement of people, rainfall patterns and so on. This can help us to formulate better measures which can help us in checking forest fires in the state every year in the long run”, he said.

Stressing on the measures taken to reduce the impact of forest fires, Verma said the department is planning to increase community involvement in checking forest fires in the state.

“The main challenge we face in the state is that it has over 71% forest cover and people live among them. But this can also help us by involving the very same people.”, he said

Verma said a proposal has also been sent to the state government to form committees at the gram panchayat level and give them incentives.

The low 2020 damage to forest cover is primarily attributed to the restricted movement of people due to Covid.

Uttarakhand forest department itself in an affidavit before the Uttarakhand high court had stated that 90% of the forest fires in the state are man-made.

Last year, three minors in Bageshwar district were caught setting fire in a forest.

At the ground level, when a forest fire occurs, there are three ways in which it can be doused. Using water, using soil and beating the forest fire with branches.

But when forest fires are raging, even such methods don’t work.

Uttarakhand has a forest area of over 38,000 sq km which constitutes 71% of the total geographical area of the state.

Anoop Nautiyal, Dehradun-based social activist said, over the years, the state government has been maintaining that nearly 90% of the forest fires are man-made.

“It is the responsibility of the people to cooperate with the government and not throw beedis, cigarettes or lit match sticks into forests. The best approach is to create awareness among people”, he said.

Vishal Singh, director centre for ecology development and research (CEDAR) Dehradun said in the Himalayas, most forest fires are caused by humans.

“A comprehensive review of research conducted to date indicates that our understanding of forest fires is enormously low. As climate change seems to be leading to higher fire intensities across the world, there is a need to study the impacts of fires here too and find ways to mitigate the risks of higher incidence of fire”, he said.

Environmentalist Ajay Singh Rawat said dousing forest fires should be people’s movement and such fires should be declared as a national disaster for a multi-agency approach to deal with them.

“When Britishers came here, they started alienating people from forest and forest rights, which continues in a way even now. In 1893, Uttarakhand’s wastelands were notified as protected forests. In 1908, people of the state demanded forest rights. In 1916, Kumaon Association was formed. Its focus was on forest rights. Between 1920 and 1947, Uttarakhand people started burning forests pressing for their forest rights. After independence, the successive governments also emulated British policy and didn’t try to build a rapport between people and forests. This alienation of people from the activities of the forest department has led to this situation that the authorities now on their own, are not able to check forest fires. Unless people on a mass scale get involved, forest fires can’t be stopped”, he said.

Forest fire activity is generally reported in Uttarakhand from February to June, with a peak in May and June.

Besides man-made, other reasons for forest fires in the state include lightning, the friction of falling rocks and monkeys accidentally throwing stones that create sparks leading to forest fires.

Over 90% of forest fires are man-made.

The fires impact biodiversity including microorganisms in the soil, wildlife, small insects, birds and people living in and around the forests, affecting the overall ecology of an area.

The official forest fire season starts on February 15 and ends on June 15.

Uttarakhand has a forest area of over 38,000 sq km which constitutes 71% of the total geographical area of the state.

More area under forests with human habitations nearby, means more chances of forest fire.

Given the diversity of forests in the state, Uttarakhand forests are prone to fires.

In Uttarakhand, 0.17% of total forest cover comes under the extremely fire-prone category, 1.60% under very highly fire-prone, 9.32% under highly fire-prone, 21.66% under moderately fire-prone and 67.25% under less fire-prone category.

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  • ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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    He is principal correspondent based at Bhopal. He covers environment and wildlife, state administration, BJP and other saffron organisations. He has special interest in social issues based stories.

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