Forest fires are increasing in the state. More than 15,200 cases have been reported in the past five months.
In the corresponding period of the previous year, 9,800 forest fires had occurred, of which 6,200 hectares were affected.
In March of this year alone, 11,895 forest fires were reported that destroyed 6,347 hectares. Most of them occurred in the Nallamala Forest, which fell under the districts of Kadapa and Kurnool.
“Good rains also a trigger”
While more than one of the reasons for the rise in forest fires are cited, the good rain is surprising!
According to information, good rainfall leads to the growth of wild grass and bushes, which are perfect conditions for a fire to break out later.
“Of the total number of forest fires in the past five months, more than 3,000 have been reported in the forest areas of Kadapa and Kurnool districts. Around 2,000 hectares of forest were destroyed in the Visakha Agency area. The forestry department quickly put out the fires, ”says Prateep Kumar, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF).
Technical advantage
“Forest personnel are put into service based on satellite information that pinpoints the exact origin of the fire. An officer with the rank of DFO oversees the operation. We could control the spread and save wildlife, ”says Prateep Kumar.
Satellite-based forest fire monitoring is one of the activities of the National Remote Sensing Center (NRSC) for disaster relief.
Satellite data are processed in the NRSC almost in real time and information is made available to users (FSI and state forest offices) within 30 minutes.
“Since 2019, data from the Suomi National Polar-Orbiting Partnership (SNPP) satellite has also been disseminated. The MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) covers 1 km x 1 km, while SNPP covers 375 mx 375 m. So we will receive more warnings, ”explains K. Gopinatha, Additional PCCF (Vigilance).