A total of 15,700 kilometers of new fire lines have been created to help control forest fires.
Arpit Pattnaik
Bhubaneswar: Officials have reported the creation of at least 15,700 km of new fire lines across the state's forests, sanctuaries, and reserves as part of fire prevention measures. This is in addition to the existing 16,600 km of fire lines. These fire lines are established by slightly digging the soil to create a barrier that separates dry leaves from the forest floor.
Debidatta Biswal, the principal chief conservator of forests, explained that they implemented a comprehensive strategy that combines traditional methods with modern technology. "Action plans were meticulously prepared for all districts to ensure seamless coordination among various departments. We created new fire lines spanning 15,700 km, while maintaining 16,600 km of existing ones. Additionally, we deployed 334 fire protection squads equipped with vehicles and essential firefighting equipment, including 4,660 leaf blowers, rakes, and safety kits," he stated.
He also mentioned that they registered approximately 6,700 mobile numbers at the beat level to send and receive SMS alerts from the Forest Survey of India. "Our staff utilizes a dedicated forest fire application for navigation and response reporting," he added. The department has established 24/7 control rooms at both the state and divisional headquarters, along with a toll-free number operational at the forest headquarters. In a pioneering effort, five AI cameras have been installed in the Similipal Tiger Reserve to provide near real-time alerts.
So far this year, the forest department has received 1,585 fire alerts. Out of these, 646 occurred inside forests, while 939 were outside. "Our teams responded promptly to 1,578 alerts," Biswal said. Most forest fires in Odisha are man-made and typically occur between February and May, with March and April seeing the highest number of active fire points. Villagers often burn dry leaves to collect mahua flowers, inadvertently causing forest fires, although mahua flowers themselves are not flammable.
In April of last year, there were 8,000 active fire points, compared to 27,000 during the same period in 2023. Last year, there was a three-fold decrease in the number of forest fires. In Similipal, smart cameras are being utilized to monitor forest fires, a practice that is more common in South America and Africa. In February and March of 2021, Similipal recorded a total of 47,101 active fires.
