Five men have died in a bid to extinguish fires that have destroyed hectares of forest land in Jim Corbett and Rajaji national parks and elsewhere in Uttarakhand.
Residents of Pauri observed a ceasework last weekend with the business community downing shutters to protest administrative apathy in the face of the tragedy.
Gaganwada village residents had gone to extinguish forest fires in Nagdev range and Advani range of Gagwadsyu when the mishap occurred. Residents said despite getting information of the incident, no senior forest official reached the village till Saturday.
Poaching activity in collusion with foresters including dropping of gunpowder from choppers, villagers lighting fires for sparking growth of fresh grass cover and lack of fire stations due to administrative neglect on way to Narendranagar and Uttarkashi and from Uttarkashi-Deoprayag to Pauri are to blame for the spread of the summer fires, locals said.
Speaking to The Pioneer, Rajesh Chandra, a taxi driver from Srinagar, said poachers, who are active in Pauri range, set fire to forests once they are “sure of the presence of an animal in a particular location. Forest officials are also known to burn down patches of land to clear dead scrub.”
Dinesh Kukreti, a resident of Kathudwadia who runs a dhaba by the roadside, said: "Gunpowder is thrown on the hills from a helicopter arriving from Ranipokhri side which rolls down the mountainside. When minor landslips and landslides occur which are a natural phenomenon in the mountains, the vegetation catches fire." Lack of water aggravates the problem, he said.
Meteorological department sources had provided ample warning early this year that summer would be hotter and drier than usual owing to no winter rain.
