Forest fire handiwork of contract employees, says Yogeeshwara

The State government has ordered an inquiry into the recent spate of forest fires, particularly in Nagarahole National Park and Shettihalli Wildlife Sanctuary in Shimoga, Forest Minister C P Yogeeshwara said here on Wednesday.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a function, Yogeeshwara said he suspected the involvement of employees in the lower rung appointed on contract basis.

Pointing out that more than 3,000 contract employees in the department had been demanding regularisation of service, he said: “They may be doing this trying to draw attention to their demands.”

The minister’s statement gives a new twist to the blame game on forest fires. The Forest department has blamed the tribals for the fires, while environmental groups held the department’s unpreparedness responsible for the situation.

Yogeeshwara said the inquiry would be conducted by senior officers of the department and a report would be submitted in two to three days.

He said satellite mapping system had been operationalised to trace the exact locations of the forest fire and the fire has been brought under the control. However, Kaushik Mukherjee, the additional chief secretary, Forests, disagreed with the minister. Mukherjee said it was “improbable” that the forest department staff were responsible for the fires.
“It looks like the handiwork of disgruntled villagers and tribals. But unless an inquiry is conducted, nothing substantial can be said about this. But it is a fact that no forest fire is accidental. Stern action will be initiated against those found guilty,” he said.

A team of officials led by B K Singh has been conducting the inquiry, he said. Mukherjee said around 200 hactares of forest cover in each of the forest ranges was damaged, and that no harm had been caused to the wildlife.

“More than 300 people have worked tirelessly for over 24 hours to douse the fire. The only precautionary measure that can be taken is to generate more awareness about the fire,” he added.