Bagmati. Due to the annual forest fires that occur in community forests in various districts of Bagmati Province, many new forests and plants are destroyed. Fires caused by human negligence cause damage to flora, fauna and biodiversity along with human losses.
From last January to Chait, more than 9,600 hectares of forest have been damaged due to fires in various districts of Bagmati Province, informed Tek Narayan Shrestha, Information Officer of the Forest Directorate of the Province. According to him, the maximum forest area of 4,221 hectares has been damaged in Chitwan, while the least has been damaged in Dolakha, with an area of 23.55 hectares.
The Bagmati Province Forest Directorate has reported that 150 hectares of forest area have been damaged in Ramechhap, 592 hectares in Sindhuli, 164.1 hectares in Rasuwa, 298 hectares in Dhading, 189 hectares in Kavre and 67 hectares in Nuwakot.
More than 1.5 million plants have been destroyed in the fires that broke out in the community forests of those districts, said Information Officer Shrestha. According to him, one person has died in Rapti, Makawanpur due to the fire.
When the forest fire reached the settlement, four houses of three people, two sheds, half a dozen goats and 35 chickens were burnt to death in Ramechhap, informed Umashankar Jayaswal, Chief of the Division Forest Office, Ramechhap. According to him, the fires that broke out in the district last year have destroyed young forest plants.
Chief Jaisawal said that after forming groups in villages and conducting awareness programs on fires, the number of fires was controlled by about 60 percent last year compared to the previous year.
‘We have formed municipal-level committees to control fires, and there is continuous coordination with the security agencies,’ said Chief Jaisawal. ‘As soon as a fire breaks out, we join those groups in controlling it, and we are also getting the support of security personnel.’ He informed that the fire that broke out in about 1,800 hectares last year has only affected 650 hectares last year.
59.27 percent of the total area of Bagmati Province, or 1.243 million hectares, is covered by forest. According to Shrestha, Information Officer of the Provincial Forest Directorate, equipment including hand pumps have been distributed along with awareness programs in the districts of the province to control the annual fires.
Problems when the culprits are not brought to justice
The main cause of forest fires is human negligence. Jaisawal, head of the Division Forest Office, Ramechhap, said that although fires occur every year due to human activities, the number of incidents has not decreased because the culprits are not brought to justice.
According to him, the Division Forest Office has arrested six people for setting fires in the forest this year.
‘We arrested the person after the villagers reported that they were setting fires in the forest,’ he said. ‘Then, while the process of filing a case through the government attorney was underway, the case could not move forward as there was no one to give a clear statement for the bond. The Forest Act provides that a person who sets fires can be fined Rs 60,000, imprisoned for three years, or both.
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