Jan 2: A year after 12,000 acres of forests in Bandipur went up in smoke, the Karnataka Forest Department is gearing up for the summer even as the Forest Survey of India (FSI) has cautioned that 22.78 lakh acres (9,222 sq km) or about 20% of the green cover spread across three districts in the central part of the state is fire-prone.
The FSI studied forest fire incidents across the country between 2004-05 and 2017 before coming up with state-specific inputs.
According to the 13-year observation, Karnataka has 7,352 “fire points” or areas measuring 5 km X 5 km with frequent fire incidents.
Though the number is lower compared to states like Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha with over 20,000 points, the sheer spread of the fire-prone area itself is a challenge for the Karnataka Forest Department.
According to data, about three lakh acres (1,199.9 sq km) of forest area is very highly fire prone with 26 to 52 fire incidents in 13 years. This is followed by 7.6 lakh acres (3,067 sq km) of “highly fire prone” areas with an average of one to two incidents every year.
Almost all of the “red alert” areas are concentrated in Uttara Kannada, Chikkmagaluru, Shivamogga and Chamarajanagar districts. As temperature rises at the end of January, so does the risk of forest fires, requiring officials to be on vigil till the end of summer.
After an investigation into the Bandipur blaze revealed that faulty fire lines and poor supervision were the reason for the spread of the fire, the department has come up with a multi-pronged approach to prevent similar incidents this year.
“After the Bandipur incident, we have created a fire cell and a standard operating procedure (SOP) which everyone has to follow. Firstly, a fire management plan is prepared and approved by a competent authority.
The SOP has well defined firelines which have to be executed by December-end and burning must be completed by January 15,” Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Head of Forest Force) Punati Sridhar told DH.
He said that to ensure its strict implementation, GPS readings of firelines are to be submitted for random verification.
“All the required equipment from fire jackets to shoes, gloves, backpack sprayers and tractors mounted with 2,000-5,000 litre tanks with high pressure pumps will be deployed at vantage points,” he said.
In addition, the department’s fire cell works in collaboration with the Karnataka State Remote Sensing Applications Centre (KSRSAC) to give fire alerts within half and hour of an area catching fire and detected by satellites.
“Earlier, the gap used to be four hours by when the fire would have spread beyond control. Now, with reduced time gap, it would be easier to control fire early,” he added.
Yadgir, Aug 8: In a shocking incident, a teenage girl died after a snake bit her in Yadgir district on Sunday.
Comments
RIP ...plis some one filled the on naga devata ... I think he retrun to naga loka ....
Yaar please call the creator as god....not creation....koi bhi jaati ho...don't take the characters of valmiki tales and call all the characters in it as GOD....keep it device...not every Pathar kutta billli saamp GO ect
Hinduism is commonly perceived as a polytheistic religion, Indeed most hindus would attest to this, by professing belief in multiple gods. while some hindus believe in the existence of 3 gods. some believe in thousands of gods and some other in thirty three crore i.e 330 million gods how ever learned hindus who is well versed in scriptures insist that a hindu should believe in one god.
The major difference between hindu and muslim is perception of god is common. Hindu belief in philosophy of pantheism. pantheism considers everything living and non living. to be divine and sacred.the common hindu therefore consider everything as god.he consider sun moon snake monkey etc and even human being as manifestations of god!
Islam on the contrary, exhorts man to consider himself and his surroundings as example divine creation rather then as divinity itself. Muslim therefore believe that everything is God's i.e the word god with an apostrophe 's'. In other words muslim believe that everything belong to god. The tree snake monkey etcin the universe belong to god.
Thus the major difference between the Hindu and Muslim Beliefs is the difference of apostrophe 's'. The Hindu says everything is god. The Muslim says everything is God's. Therefore 'WORSHIP THE CREATOR NOT HIS CREATIONS.
How can a god bite and kill his creations?
Yeh Wrong No. hai, Read your authentic scriptures and ponder on it.
RIP!
Superstition belief....snake does not spare anyone....but it should have...cant play with it....
we cannot blame the snake here because
girls know that is god as per hindhu culture but
snake dont know that it is god
Cow, buffalo, Rat, Elephant, Crow, Monkey, Donkey, Snake.. What next? Mooka praani galella dewara? worship the creator not creations! and specially not animals..
Indians are foolish, this happens only in India they do not know what to worship linga, snake, monkey, donkey, pig etc.....
Yes to cover their cunning and so called deva bhakti, some will start to blame that lady. Punishment from Naag devtha and they will continue these bling practice.
karana rao, Where is naga loka?
Whatever may be the reason, we lost a precious life. Pray for God's mercy on the poor family.
Snake is not God or it will not take you to God. Worship the creator and not his creation.
this is called mooda nambike and she deserve for it.
she will directly go to nagaloka, lucky girl.
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