Fire in Nuh forest leaves trees gutted

Hundreds of trees in the Tauru forest in Nuh district burned down after a blaze swept through the area, forest and fire officials aware of the matter said on Saturday

Hundreds of trees in the Tauru forest in Nuh district burned down after a blaze swept through the area, forest and fire officials aware of the matter said on Saturday.

Gurugram, India-December 09, 2023: A fire broke out in Tauru forest area after illegal industrial chemical waste dumped caught fire and spread inside the forest leaving hundreds of trees turned into ashes, in Gurugram, India, on Saturday, 09 December 2023. (Photo by Parveen Kumar/Hindustan Times)

Officials said the fire broke out on Wednesday near Khori Kalan village near Tauru town, adding that it took the 10 fire tenders sent to the spot around two days to control the blaze.

Fireman Sukhbir Singh said, “10 fire tenders were used, and it will take two more days to completely douse the flames.”

Village panch Javed Khan said they tried to spray water so that the fire could be controlled, but the smoke is still emanating from the spot. “Residents have complained about respiratory issues due to the smoke. We have used more than 100 water tractor trolleys with the help of more than 50 villagers,” he said.

The residents also alleged that the fire was triggered by industrial chemical waste from Bhiwadi in Rajasthan illegally dumped in the forest.

Azad Ali, a member of the Khori Kalan panchayat who alerted the fire department about the blaze, said, “We have become a dump yard for the factories in Bhiwadi. Initially they would just discharge liquid chemicals here but now dumping mafia come at night and dump industrial waste in forest land. It is that waste which caught fire.”

Nuh district forest officer Vijender Singh said that teams have been monitoring the spot for the last three days and will calculate the loss once the situation becomes normal. “We have also asked the locals to remain at distance to ensure they are safe. We are visiting the site twice a day and a team is deployed at the spot,” he said.

Fireman Singh said, “The fire has damaged a lot of plantation in the forest area. Tonnes of waste has been lying here for the last one year, and scrap dealers and rag pickers have turned the area into a dump yard leading to fire incidents.”