DEHRADUN/ALMORA: After a brief lull, Uttarakhand is again witnessing a surge in
forest fires
. Over the past weekend, the blaze reached dangerously close to the
Army
golf course in
Ranikhet
, a historic colonial-era putting ground. According to local officials, the blaze could be controlled “after a two-hour intense struggle”, and “thankfully, not much damage was reported”.
On Saturday, the fires also reached
Military Hospital
in Ranikhet.
Lt Col Manish Shrivastava, PRO (Defence), said: “The flames reached the hospital’s family ward, after which the commandant and hospital staff rushed to combat the blaze. Simultaneously, it spread to a civilian’s house adjacent to the hospital.”
Around 130 Army personnel were engaged in battling the blaze along with local fire fighting teams for several hours. Ranikhet fire service officer Vansh Narayan said, “Army and our team managed to control the fire before a big mishap could happen.”
On Sunday evening, a blaze was also reported in the forests housing the Army’s firing range in Ranikhet. It was brought under control after over an hour of fire-fighting efforts. Similarly, a forest fire in Bagwalipokhar area affected a govt school.
Quick action from teachers and students averted significant damage to the building. In Lamgada forest, again in Kumaon, a blaze on Sunday evening reached a BSNL tower and nearby residential houses, sparking panic among residents before being contained by the fire brigade, forest department, and villagers. In Bageshwar, the blaze had reached the chief education officer’s residence.
Divisional forest officer Deepak Singh, overseeing Almora and Bageshwar, said, “The forest department is working diligently to prevent further incidents. We urge the public to report any wildfires immediately to help avert casualties and damage to property and forest land.”
Besides Kumaon, which has recorded 592 forest fire incidents, damaging over 834 hectares of land till now, the recent fires have also affected many places in the Garhwal region, with Mussoorie, Narendernagar, Kalsi, Lansdowne, and Rudraprayag forest divisions reporting blazes.
On Monday, 23 incidents were reported, scorching around 36 hectares of land.
(With inputs from Kalyan Das in Dehradun)
