SHWETA KAMAT
shweta@herald-goa.com
PANJIM: On March 7, when the great fires in the Mhadei wildlife sanctuary forest erupted, the Forest Minister and the government straight away admitted they were man-made fires. Though the men who “made the fires” were never named, very curiously, a government assessment report, two months later, now states that blistering and unprecedented day temperatures, low moisture, and humidity are accounted to be the prime cause for sparking forest fires in the State’s wild in the first half of March that impacted an area of about 4.18 sq km.
Bicholim-based activist and Mhadei crusader Ramesh Gawas said, “This report of the Forest Department is just a pretext to save the skin of the Forest Minister. How is it that increasing temperatures affect forest only in wildlife sanctuaries where there are tigers and do not affect the other parts of the Western Ghat forest areas?”
“Goa does not have the typical tropical forest trees which have the tendency to catch fire due to friction. Moreover, the impact of climate change is not so severe in Goa that climatic changes will ignite forest fires and that too in wildlife sanctuaries. The forest fires were manmade and deliberate with the sole purpose of destroying the forest and wildlife,” Gawas added.
Though admitting that natural causes can be one of the reasons, Environmentalist Rajendra Kerkar alleged that villagers whose forest rights claims are yet to be settled have been involved in clearing forests to expand the area or for encroachment purposes.
Kerkar said “In Sattari, the expansion of horticulture land by cutting forests is going on uncontrolled for the past many years.”
He said that the Forest Department has ignored it completely.
“Since 2019, incidents of forest fires have repeatedly taken place in Goa, but the Forest Department has failed to bring this under control or rather act against those involved. This time too they have failed to act,” he said.
The State Forest Department in its assessment report submitted to the government has concluded that the fires were largely triggered by natural causes; though nearly 34 FIRs have been registered mostly against unknown persons, under the Indian Forest Act, 1927, the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, the Goa, Daman, and Diu Preservation of Trees Act, 1984, and relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code.
A senior official told O Heraldo that the report has been submitted to the government after which it would be made public.
The official said that as per the study undertaken, the department is of the view that a conducive environment and extreme weather conditions - deficient rainfall in the preceding season, unusually high temperatures, heat wave conditions, low moisture and humidity led to these fires. “Even the fires that were reported after March 10, can also be attributed to rising temperature,” the official added.
The official pointed out that Goa witnessed heat wave-like conditions during that period. “Not just in Goa, but across India saw a rise in forest fire cases due to natural causes,” the official said.
At the same time, the department in its report also mentioned some fires near cashew plantations caused by owners lighting fires. “There could be five to six cases wherein people may have deliberately lit fires. This is done to clear weeds and reduce undergrowth,” an official said.
The State reported its first wildfire on March 5 and by March 10, 74 sporadic fire incidents were reported covering wildlife sanctuaries, private land, reserve forests, comunidade land, and others. About 4.18 sq km of forest area including 2.27 sq km in three wildlife sanctuaries were affected. Also, of the total 74 fire incidents reported during the first fortnight of March, 32 fire incidents were reported in three wildlife sanctuaries.
In 2022, 15 minor forest fires were reported in Goa between March and May; 34 fire incidents were reported in the summer of 2021.
The forest fires have devastated many parts of Goa over the last three months causing severe damage to forest ecosystems, loss of biodiversity. The government has decided to undertake an exercise using drones and cutting-edge technologies to plant trees to restore the flora and fauna in these affected areas.
Just two months ago, forest fires across the length and breadth of Goa had caught national attention, as the authorities and government struggled to douse the flames.
A massive forest fire that raged at the picturesque hills at Chapoli Dam in Canacona for two days – May 1 and 2 –left a trail of destruction.
A ground inspection by Herald TV showed that numerous trees had been gutted in the fire, especially cashew trees along the stretch where the fire raged. According to the local Forest Department, while the exact affected area would be known only after an official audit, it is estimated that almost a 4 sq km area was gutted.