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.
Comments
Kumar!! Shut up!! Don't blame his parents, and exactly nobody know what took place there..
Rider must have controlled the bike... So it depends on rider, how he rides..., imagine how hurted parents are? Instead blaming them...
And think twice before you type sh*t
Dear Mr. Kumar, your comment reflects your immaturity, lack of understanding of the situation and although I'm sure your intentions were at the right place. I would like to tell you that the deceased and both the parents were not fools. Only you seem like a fool here for that insensitive comment. I hope no harm comes to you and ur loved ones and you are not called a fool for it. I wish you a safe life. Also, I hope you did pray for the departed soul.
Dear Mr Kumar, your comment shows your lack of understanding of the situation. Also the parents were not at fault here. Since you didn't know the person and since the full situation is not given.. I would suggest you would shut up before passing blame or using such words about the deceased person. The person and parents were both not fools. The only fool I see here is you. I suggest you stay safe though. And no harm comes to you. And people not call you a fool after such a tragic incident. Also thank you Mr./mrs.shaji for showing maturity and decency.
Dear Kumar, we cant blame parents. sometimes, they are helpless agaisnt the hard will of their kids. Some boys even say to their parents that they will discontinue study in case their demand is not met. May God bless kids with correct way of life.
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