Forest Fires in Uttarakhand :

 A prolonged dry spell and abnormally high temperatures have set off alarm bells for forest departments in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand over forest fires causing huge damage to flora and fauna. This is an annual story in the hills, with the authorities seeming helpless as the fires rage.

Forest fires in Uttarakhand have been wreaking havoc  with multiple fires reported from the Tehri forest range. According to sources, fires have also been seen in mountains in Almora, Peora, Surya Gaon, Sattal and Kausani.

As per a report, at least 32 cases of wildfires have been reported from Uttarakhand state capital Dehradun in just 11 days. The report states that at least 189.25 hectares of forest area was gutted in Almora by 76 fire incidents. At the same time, 168.28 hectares of forests were reduced to ashes in Nanital in 170 cases of wildfire incidents.

Forest officials say deficient rains and increase in temperatures are to be blamed for rising incidents of wildfires. Meanwhile, environmentalists in the state have blamed humans for wildfire incidents.Wildfires in the Western Himalayan region are almost entirely man-made.Villagers and forest officials set land on fire to burn agricultural residue and for controlled burning of pine needles to encourage grass and fodder growth. The real problem arrives when such fires get out of hand.

Main Causes :

While allegations are being levelled against the timber smugglers and they are being accused of setting the forests on fire, there are some natural reasons for the forest to catch fire. Dry weather, very high temperatures,  pine needles caught fire in summer and windy conditions are certainly fanning the fire and helping it to spread. The government has decided to study the reasons behind major fires, especially in summer, and prepare an action plan accordingly.

History :

Human-made forest fires in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand have been a regular and historic feature. Major fires have been noted in 1911, 1921, 1930, 1931, 1939, 1945, 1953, 1954, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1961, 1964, 1966, 1968, 1970, 1972 and 1995. Some fires during 1921, 1930 and 1942 have been associated with popular movements against the then British government's forestry policies and for independence. Most of these fires occur in the chir pine zone. Forests with chir pine (Pinus roxburghii) are very prone to fire, as their foliage easily catches fire. But the pine itself is resistant to it and these fires help in their regeneration by reducing coverage of broad-leaf trees leading to an increase in the land covered by chir pine and oak. The broad-leaved forest is dominated by oak species, including Banj oak (Quercus leucotrichophora). Resin is harvested from these pines, and fires are often intentionally set to remove the carpet of pine needles that come in the way of harvesting activity. In June 1981, a blanket ban was introduced against felling of standing trees 1000 metres above sea level, and this ban comes in the way of removing pine trees in the areas where they are invading. Apart from accidental fires, a number of causes and motivations for setting fires have been noted which include encroachment on forest lands and concealing illegal timber extraction. Fires are also set by honey and sal seed collectors, to scare away wild animals, or to improve grass growth.

Impacts :

Fires destroy biodiversity directly and have more indirect long-term impacts including the encouragement of fire and pioneer species. It has been suggested that the dark carbon dust emitted by the fires deposited on Himalayan glaciers could hasten their melting. This could affect the hydrology of the rivers that are a source of water for human populations in northern India. The average temperature of northern India saw increase of 0.2 °C.

Seven fatalities were reported as of 4 May 2016. The Pinegrove School, a boarding school at Kasauli, was evacuated as fires had reached the compound walls. Tourism and wildlife at the Corbett National Park and Rajaji Tiger reserve regions were affected. Various other locations in these Himalayan states of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh are tourist attractions in summer, and they now face heavy air pollution. The forest fires also disrupted the functioning of the Kalka–Shimla Railway line.

Scientists of the Govind Ballabh Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development formed a team to survey the area and study the effects of the fires on the melting of glaciers. Ecologists suggested that clearing of forest floors of the fallen pine leaves, which are readily combustible, should be undertaken by forest department as well as locals on a grassroots level to prevent such major fire outbreaks. Production of biomass briquettes from these pine needles should be promoted, serving as a source of fuel as well as a solution to prevent wildfires. In 2016, major forest fire incident took place for that National Disaster Response Force was deployed for rescue operations in the Kumaon and Garhwal areas. Around 6,000 personnel from the Forest Department were deployed. As of 30 April 2016, 922 incidences of fire were reported affecting around 2,000 hectares (4,900 acres) of forest area. The Mi-17 helicopters of the Indian Air Force with "Bambi buckets" were used to douse the fires with water. However, the heavy smog that developed in the area affected the aerial operations of the army. The affected area later increased to around 3,500 hectares (8,600 acres), extending into Himachal Pradesh. The regions saw rainfalls on 3 May ranging from 7 mm to 11 mm, which helped in controlling the fire.

Solutions :

• Experts say there is technology to handle the pine needles by converting them into combustible bricks. The state budget for this fiscal has a provision to establish 25 pine needle-based units in a bid to not only help prevent pine forest fires, but also provide employment opportunities to local people.
• Taking such a severity into consideration, the concerned Environment Minister has begun trial runs for a pre-fire alert system that will issue warnings via SMS about possible fire outbreaks in the country. The idea is to inform the forest department even before the fire starts spreading.
• Increasing the field staff of Forest Departments by discontinuing the claimed ‘forest plantations’ would help control forest fires, which in turn would help rejuvenation of fire-stressed forest ecosystems. This would help indigenous forests grow back.
• Uttarakhand has one of the prominent forest research centres, that is, Forest Research Institute Deemed to be University, Dehradun. Surprisingly, the respondents have never consulted the institution for the reasons and solutions of devastating forest fires in the State. This clearly shows a lackadaisical approach of the respondents in tackling the forest fires