Srinagar: The High Court of J&K and Ladakh has closed a suo-moto Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed about the alarming surge in forest fires that swept through Jammu and Kashmir this spring.
The order to the effect was passed by a division bench comprising Chief Justice Arun Palli and Justice Rajnesh Oswal after perusal of an affidavit filed by Chief Conservator of Forests, Kashmir. The affidavit explained the measures being taken by the department to “conclusively” address the issue.
The PIL informed that over 100 forest fires erupted in just fortnight, devastating more than 200 acres of forest cover across Jammu & Kashmir. The worst-affected regions include Anantnag, Rajouri, Ramban, Reasi, Doda, and Poonch districts.
Subsequently, a notice was issued to the government and the Chief Conservator of Forests Kashmir filed an affidavit, claiming therein that in many forest types, especially dry temperate and subtropical regions, fire plays a key ecological role in regeneration, nutrient cycling and habitat dynamics.
The officer further submitted that the climate change, human pressures and land use changes have increased fire intensity, frequency and impact, necessitating modern prevention and control measures.
Among human-Induced causes, he mentioned burning of crop/farm residue, carelessly discarded cigarettes, matchsticks, and unextinguished campfires, burning of forest litter or waste along roadsides and habitations adjoining forests, use of fire by locals to obtain fresh growth of grass besides the accidental fires on account of LoC firing.
Among the natural causes, although rare, the Chief Conservator counted lightening and rolling stones during the dry season as reasons for sparking the fire. Also accumulation of leaf litter on forest floor, rising temperatures and altered rainfall patterns were delineated among the reasons for the fires.
To mitigate the forest fires, the officer said that Forest Fire Control Rooms have been established at different levels in the respective Forest divisions.
He added that manpower from the Forest Protection Force and other Forest Wings has also been involved to control the forest fires. Awareness programs are being undertaken among the forest fringe communities, he said.
Other than that he claimed that the department has undertaken various preventive and control measures to mitigate and manage forest fires. He said the measures include creation and maintenance of fire lines which act as physical barriers to prevent spreading of fire, use of prescribed burns to reduce combustible forest litter under supervision before the onset of fire season and use of satellite-based fire alerts (FSI Fire Alert System-Van Agni).
The field officers and officials of the department, according to the chief forester of the state, are registered on the alert system and get regular alerts on occurrence of forest fire incidents.
Also, joint control for forest fire control have been set up and are equipped with hand tools and fire fighting equipment consisting of fire beaters, rake hoes, backpack sprayers, and other essential tools etc, the Chief Conservator said.
Mock-drills and training are often conducted from time to time, the officer said.
In addition to it, the Chief Conservator said that community engagement, involving village forest committees and local volunteers and awareness campaigns are undertaken.
The Chief Conservator said that the Government was pro-actively pursuing the matter by undertaking various preventive and control measures.
The two judge bench concluding their proceedings on the matter recorded “we have examined the response/reply and heard learned counsel for the respondents. In the wake of the position indicated …., we do not consider it necessary to continue with the matter any further”.
The bench closed the PIL but underlined that the matter being “sensitive, “we still consider it expedient to appoint Mr Nadeem Qadiri, Advocate, as an Amicus, just in case any fresh cause of action arises or anything that impels the intervention of this Court, to move an appropriate application in the present petition itself for necessary orders”.
