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Fiery endeavour to check forest fires
Towering inferno
One of state’s oldest colleges in dire straits
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Wildlife panel
ONGC stable despite meltdown, says MD
Young dancers enthrall audience
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Fiery endeavour to check forest fires
Dehradun, April 24 Uttarakhand forest department sources say since February 15, out of a total of 386 forest fires, 253 incidents have taken place in Garhwal, 60 in Kumaon and 53 in wildlife areas, thereby affecting a expanse of 406.43 hectares, 137 hectares and 154.50 hectares, respectively. Alarmingly, around 7.50 hectares of plantations have also been affected in these fires adding to the losses of the department. Foresters believe that despite the hue and cry, Uttarakhand has been successful in controlling forest fires that too when faced with both staff and fund crunch. Forest fires have proved catastrophic in the West. In 2007 in Greece, 84 persons died in forest fires. In the same year in North America, nine persons were killed in forest fires. Similar incidents have taken place time and again in countries like Canada and South Africa. Uttarakhand has been successful in containing forest fires despite its miniscule resources and seldom has there been human causality. Interestingly, a country like the USA spends around 1 billion dollars every year in tackling forest fires, while in our country there is hardly any budget for tackling such fires which are a big threat not only to trees and wildlife, but also micro flora and fauna that gets destroyed in the process and is least accounted for. For the first time this time, the Uttarakhand government has decided to make its helicopter services available to the principal chief conservator of forests for an aerial survey whenever necessary. This is apart from preparations undertaken by the forest department by itself. It has not only put its field staff on alert but is also trying to win over the confidence of locals as a strategy to deal with the meance. “We have directed all DFOs to remain stationed at their headquarters so as to ensure prompt action in case of detection of a fire. This is apart from establishing crew stations. “Forest officials are already in constant touch with Mahila Mangal Dal units, van panchayats and other public representatives,” said Dr RBS Rawat, principal chief conservator of forests. He has been working hard to find a permanent solution to the forest fires that stand as a major challenge to the forest wealth in the state. Learning from past experiences, Uttarkhand has this year set up 2,000 crew stations across the state for timely detection of forest fires and prompt remedial action. Forest officials are in touch with the local administration for fullproof preparations, says chief environment officer AR Sinha. The crew stations are proving of immense help in timely detection of forest fires and subsequent action. Fire reports are being released twice a day at 10.30 am and 4.30 pm for constant monitoring of forest fires. The forest department in recent years has also sought the services of the Uttarakhand Space Application Centre for satellite data that is usef for detecting forest fires. Its director, Dr MM Kimothi, says the centre has extended its real-time monitoring and early warning system technology to the forest department for minimising forest fire losses. Conservator of forests administration SM Joshi says that most fires are manmade and it is for the people living in close proximity of forests to understand the importance of forest wealth. He says that preventive measures like clearing forest lines and control burning are effective both for curbing forest fires and regenerating forests. Even as many call for a change in forest fire-fighting methods, few know that the traditional system used by the forest authorities is the best considering the state’s topographical and climatic conditions. This fact has been substantiated by none other than the World Bank consultancy team. A survey conducted by the union ministry of environment and forests in 2006 showed that among the states affected by forest fires (including Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh) Uttarakhand forests had suffered the least damage on account of forest fires. Taking cue from the forest fires that also affected Corbett and Rajaji Park areas in Uttarakhand last year, the department is exercising caution to ensure that there is no repeat of such incidents in these protected areas. While Corbett so far has remained fire-free, Rajaji National Park has seen 11 incidents of forest fires in its nine ranges affecting 25 hectares. “Apart from setting up 49 crew stations, we have identified vintage observation points to ensure speedy action on detection of a forest fire,” said Gangeshwar Pandey, warden, Rajaji park. The park is also coming up with fire danger ratings. “Each year we are confronted with new challenges and we learn from these experiences to meet the goal of minimising losses in these fires,”
observed Pandey.
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Towering inferno
Haridwar, April 24 The bhabhar grass found in this region catches fire easily, thus aggravating the problem. Since the past few days, jungles in the Motichur and Haridwar ranges have been in flames. Forest department employees are making efforts to fight the flames but in vain, such is the the extent and intensity of the fire. Park director SS Rasailly says the high altitude is making the task of fire fighters difficult. A fire has engulfed a large chunk of forest land in the Chirak and Ravli forest range of Rajaji park too. Forest ranger VS Tomar said the reason for the fire may be some inflammable substance left behind by locals or tourists. He urged locals and tourists to co-operate with the forest department as valuable forest wealth was being lost. A forest fire fighters team is working round the clock to extinguish the fire in the Chirak and Ravli range. Forest warden IA Siddiqui said a special team had been formed to prevent the fire from spreading. The flames can be seen from the city. A thick cloud of smog has spread in the area. Rajaji National Park and adjoining areas are prone to fire as this region falls under the moist sub-tropical deciduous forests. Residents are shocked to see the forests in flames for the past few days. “This is almost shocking…. Forests are in flames. Temperatures are touching 40 degrees. There is water scarcity and frequent shutdown of power. All this is the result of human intervention,” said Prof SK
Batra, SMJN Degree College.
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One of state’s oldest colleges in dire straits
Dehradun, April 24 A survey of the campus revealed a shabby building waiting a whitewash. The toilets are unhygienic and students avoid going there. The campus is a hub of stray animals and it is a common sight to find dogs and goats loitering around the campus. The college is located in a very congested and old location called Karanpur which makes it all the more unfriendly.The scene outside is equally awful. A public toilet adjoining the boundary wall of the college smells awful and has become a resting joint for pigs. Heaps of trash, junk and pan masala spit make the situation worse. “Being one of the biggest college of Uttarakhand, the management should improve the condition of the college. For the past 10 years, many students in the state have been opting for “If the situation doesn’t change, then only students from poor background will be left to study in these unhygienic conditions,” said Ekta, an former student. Besides filthy surroundings, the incidents of rowdyism by some students of DAV have been a matter of concern and has caused fear in the minds of students particularly women. Security incharge AM Chaturvedi said, “Security is a concern and we have deployed police force and have a separate gate for girls and boys. “As exams are going on, we have assigned duties to teachers and have also arranged flying squads to keep an eye on miscreants,” he said. “We have received complains about the bad state of infrastructure. We are following a plan and will soon build new toilets. “All this will take some time as we don’t get a large amount of funds from the government and managing around 29,000 students is not a small task,” said principal Ashok Kumar Saxena. As far as students not maintaining the required standard of attendance, he said, “The attendance record of students is not exceptional but we make sure that students are provided library facilities. “We also have 175 qualified teachers who are always ready to answer their queries.” “We are working on a master plan and in the near future, we will come with a separate building for department of law. Courses in tourism, mass communication will be started. “We have asked our student union members to keep a check on unruly activities by the students,” said Ashok Kumar Saxena.
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Wildlife panel
Dehradun, April 24 The committee has nominated MLA Karen Hilton, Harshvardhan Sharma and WII scientist Dr GS Rawat as its other members. According to Additional Secretary, Forests, RK Mishra, the committee, whose tenure would be equivalent to the tenure of Wildlife Board, would help in speedy conduct of matters linked to the board. Taking into account the busy schedule of the Chief Minister who heads the Wildlife Board, the newly constituted standing committee will help the board in carrying out its work in a speedy manner.
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ONGC stable despite meltdown, says MD
Dehradun, April 24 He further said ONGC has been able to remain stable, even as global economic slowdown had severely affected many companies, mainly due to its long-term investment plans. For the sub surface exploration of Uranium, ONGC has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Uranium Corporation of India. While disclosing that the company is all set to go for uranium exploration in several parts of the country, Sharma said sub surface exploration for uranium would be done in the states of Gujarat, Assam and Rajasthan and a core team of officials has also been set up in this regard. Speaking at a media briefing, Sharma said research and development work for the search of Uranium is going on and the initial results are encouraging. “The investment for the project would be worked out only after the study of initial data”, he added. He said ONGC is the only company in the country to have equipped with leaching technique, which will come handy in uranium mining as this takes place only on land surface. Sharma further said crude oil and coal will continue to play dominant role in fulfilling the energy requirements but we will have to look beyond the hydrocarbons. “ONGC is trying to trap all possible non-conventional sources of energy available in country, with special emphasis on harnessing the nuclear energy”, he said. Speaking in the context of solar energy, Sharma said solar power could be tapped at places like Rajasthan, which get good sunshine. He also said talks with the top companies of the world are on but refused to divulge the names of the companies. He informed nuclear energy share in India’s over all energy pool is only one percent as against six per cent in the world. “Since the demand for energy is growing very fast, ONGC has set up an energy center, focusing to tap the nuclear and solar energy,” he revealed. “We are here to look beyond oil and gas,” he said.
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Young dancers enthrall audience
Haridwar, April 23 A glimpse of this was witnessed recently when Nrityangan Society organised a dance show for children. They performed with élan earned lot of appreciation and applause for their breathtaking performances. The participants included Kashika Kapoor, Bhavika Suveja, Khushi Aggarwal, Annapurna Chauhan, Shradha Soni, Prisha Mehta, Sanskriti Aggarwal, Rajshi Sharma, Aarushi Arora,Megha Chaudhari, Tanya Panjwani, Kashish Sehgal, Ayush, Arushi Grehawar among others. City magistrate, Archana Grehawar applauded the young talent and said art is the best form of expression and executed to perfection by the children. Chief guest Gowardhan Maharaj felicitated the winners.
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With little snowfall and rains last winters, curbing forest fires this summer is proving a daunting task. So far 386 incidents of forest fires affecting 697.93 hectares of forest land have been recorded
With temperatures touching 41 degree Celsius, the fires in the forests of the Haridwar forest division and Rajaji National Park area is turning into an inferno. It appears the fire is fast engulfing the forest-clad mountains.
Dehradun, April 24
