Bhaderwah (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], November 6 (ANI): With the onset of the dry season raising concerns over forest fire incidents, the Forest Division Bhaderwah has stepped up its preparedness by establishing round-the-clock control rooms across four forest ranges, deploying equipped firefighting teams and strengthening coordination with emergency services to ensure a swift response to potential fire outbreaks.
The control rooms have been established in the Neeru, Kellar, Bhalessa and Chiralla ranges as part of the department’s preventive strategy to monitor forest areas and respond promptly to any fire incident.
The dedicated teams comprise personnel from the Territorial Forest Wing, the Forest Protection Force and the State Forest Corporation (SFC), all equipped with necessary tools and equipment to tackle fire outbreaks and contain their spread in forest areas.
Bhaderwah Divisional Forest Officer Devinder Kumar stated that the forest department has mapped out every range across various locations to identify highly vulnerable forest compartments.
“We’ve mapped out every range across different locations to identify which compartments are highly vulnerable. We shortlisted these compartments using data from the last 10 years. We’ve set up joint control rooms right next to these compartments. Every range has a joint control room with staff from our protection force, territorial, SFC, social forestry, and others,” Kumar told ANI.
These control rooms are functioning 24×7 and remain connected with Fire and Emergency Services to ensure seamless coordination and swift mobilisation of resources whenever a fire incident is reported.
Moving beyond routine monitoring, the department is also conducting firefighting drills to assess the preparedness of its personnel, familiarise teams with emergency response procedures and ensure effective handling of potential fire situations.
The measures assume significance as dry leaves, grass and other combustible forest material can accelerate the spread of flames, posing a threat to forest ecosystems, wildlife and nearby habitations.
Kumar also disclosed that the Bhaderwah Forest Division has dealt with at least 30 to 35 cases of forest fires covering more than 1 hectare of land last year.
“We’ve created a single joint control room for all the forest staff and wildlife personnel. If there’s a fire, the staff is dispatched from there. If we look at last year, I personally handled at least 30 to 35 cases of forest fires larger than 1 hectare,” added Kumar.
Amidst the rise in forest fire incidents, Bhaderwah Divisional Forest Officer Devinder Kumar appealed to residents, particularly those living near forest fringe areas, to remain vigilant, avoid burning fields and immediately report any signs of fire to authorities
“People living near the forests also set fire to their fields. They should monitor those fires too. If the fire spreads to the forest, it becomes an uncontrolled forest fire, which is really hard to put out. We have huge, remote areas here. The faster our control rooms can respond, the quicker we can control the fire. So, I appeal to the public. Wherever you see a forest fire, I appeal to you as a responsible citizen to help put it out,” appealed Kumar.
With round-the-clock monitoring, equipped personnel, firefighting drills and coordination with emergency services, the department is focusing on early detection and rapid response to safeguard the region’s valuable forest resources during the vulnerable dry season. (ANI)
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