SHIMLA: Concerned over the rising instances of forest fires across
Himachal Pradesh
, forest minister Govind Singh Thakur has not ruled out the possibility of using helicopter to control the forest fires during emergency situation. He said that department is in touch with private companies providing the chopper and army to deal with any emergency situation.
Several hectares of forest land is under fire in
Solan district
and other parts of state and forest department is making efforts are on to control the fire. Prolonged dry spell and negligence of people both are being blamed for these forest fires.
Govind Singh Thakur said that compared to last year, this year less number of forest fires are being reported across state. There are 196 forest ranges in Himachal Pradesh out of which 80 forest ranges are most sensitive and fire prone.
Last year 122 forest fire cases were reported up to April 30, while this year only 27 cases of forest fires were reported upto May 8 in the State while rest of the data is being compiled.
Rapid Forest Fire Force has been registered with Forest Survey of India (FSI) through which more than 11,000 volunteers, NGOs and Members of PRIs receive SMS of forest fire alert in their area. He said that this figure is highest in country and likely to exceed 20,000 in near future.
Anand Bodh is Senior Assistant Editor with The Times of India in ...
Read MoreAnand Bodh is Senior Assistant Editor with The Times of India in Shimla and has covered militancy in J&K and general news in Punjab and Chandigarh before moving to Himachal Pradesh. He loves the rugged mountains and glaciers, keeps track of development in these areas and occasionally highlights the unique culture and traditions beside politics and environmental issues of this hill state in his writing.
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