Knowledge Nugget | Forest fires — What Parliamentary committee flags and what more you should know
A House panel recently called for new satellite to monitor forest fires in Himalayan region. Why are forest fires important for the UPSC exam? How are forest fires monitored and managed in India? Also go beyond the knowledge nugget to know about the National Action Plan on Forest Fires.
Forest fires can spread rapidly across dry vegetation, making early detection, effective response and long-term ecosystem recovery crucial. (Image enhanced using AI) Take a look at the essential events, concepts, terms, quotes, or phenomena every day and brush up your knowledge. Here’s your UPSC Current Affairs knowledge nugget for today on forest fires.
Knowledge Nugget: Forest Fires
Subject: Indian Geography
Why in the news?
Flagging gaps in monitoring, regulation, and management of forest fires, a parliamentary standing committee has made a slew of prescriptions, including prioritising the launch of a geostationary satellite for round-the-clock monitoring. The recommendations were made in a new report — ‘Forest fires in the Himalayan Region, its adverse effects and mitigation measures’ — tabled in both Houses of Parliament last week. In this context, let us know about forest fires in depth.
Key takeaways:
1. The House panel on Science and Technology, Environment, Forest and Climate Change also recommended a region-specific study to establish if there is any empirical link between climate change and forest fire frequency, including examination of temperature trends, precipitation, and dry spells.
2. Pointing out gaps, the panel also called for a time-bound decision on setting up at least two regional response centres of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), dedicated to tackling forest fires in the Himalayan region. The panel also called for a ‘National pine-needle utilisation policy’ to identify zones and provide fiscal and market-access incentives for pine needle collection.
3. The panel examined the causes, impacts, monitoring, and mitigation of forest fires in states across Western and Eastern Himalaya, which make up 17 per cent of India’s landmass but account for 57 per cent of India’s forest fire incidents.
What are forest fires and how are they classified?
4. The National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM) in India defines a forest fire as an unclosed and freely spreading fire that consumes natural fuels like vegetation, litter, and organic matter. When these fires burn completely out of control, they are categorized as wildfires.
5. Forest fires are broadly categorised into three categories – ground, surface and crown fire.
(i) Fires that burn organic material in the soil are called ground fires, and they burn slowly, under vegetation.
(ii) Surface fires are caused largely by burning of dry leaves, branches and other materials on the ground. Such fires spread swiftly, as in the case of fires in Himachal.
(iii) Crown fires burn quickly, from one tree top to another and have huge flames with intense heat. Such fires are rare in India.
How fire-prone are India’s forests?
6. According to the Indian State of Forest Report (ISFR), 2023, the total forest and tree cover of the country is 8,27,356.95 km2, which is around 24 per cent of the geographical area of the country.
7. According to the Forest Survey of India website, roughly 54.40 per cent of the country’s forest area is vulnerable to occasional fires. An additional 7.49 per cent faces moderately frequent fires, 2.40per cent experiences high-level fire incidence, and about 35.71 per cent remains largely unaffected.
8. The forest fire season in India lasts between November to June. Factors like temperatures, precipitation, vegetation, and moisture contribute to the scale and frequency of these fires. Three factors cause the spread of forest fires — fuel load, oxygen and temperature. Dry leaves are fuel for forest fires.
9. Higher fire incidents are reported in March, April and May due to ample availability of dry biomass following the end of winter and amid the prevailing summer season. But in recent years, even winter months are also witnessing forest fires with increased frequency and intensity across Himalayan states.
10. The FSI website adds: “Severe fires occur in many forest types particularly dry deciduous forest, while evergreen, semi-evergreen and montane temperate forests are comparatively less prone (India State of Forest Report 2015)”.
What are some of the causes behind forest fires?
11. Most fires are believed to be man-made, due to changes in agriculture and unchecked land-use patterns. According to a government report, locals set forests on fire for the growth of good quality grass, to cover up illegal cutting of trees, for poaching, etc. Friction of electricity cables with dry leaves also triggers wildfires, as does lightning, according to the report.
12. Notably, setting a forest on fire is a punishable offence under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023. A forest official said several cases have been lodged but the accused remain unidentified in most such cases.
13. According to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), key drivers of forest fires include:
(i) The accumulation of pine needles in the western Himalayas.
(ii) The collection of Mohua leaf (tendu patta) in central-western India.
(iii) The cultivation of shifting cultivation (jhum cultivation) in the northeast.
14. These factors are further exacerbated by climate change induced rising average temperatures, erratic rainfall, prolonged dry spells, and lightning, amplifying the disaster. The House committee also noted that the fires in Western Himalaya are primarily driven by extreme pre-monsoon heat, pine-needle fuel loads and proximity-based human ignition, whereas, there is a complex interplay of atmospheric dryness and cultivation-linked burning practices in Eastern Himalaya.
Why are Pine trees more susceptible to forest fires?Chir pine trees are highly combustible and dominate a stretch of the Himalayan belt. In the summer, the resin from the dry leaves/needles (locally called Pirul) is highly inflammable. The quantity shed is massive and covers the floor. The accumulation can cause a massive fire simply from a small spark from a cigarette butt. |
How are forest fires monitored in India?
1. The house panel recommendations come at a crucial time as the country’s active fire monitoring remains dependent on foreign, polar-orbiting satellites, which observe the country only eight times a day and no data is available for a large duration.
2. Forest Survey of India (FSI), monitors and disseminates the satellite based forest fire alerts to the State Forest Departments (SFDs) and other registered mobile users whenever forest fires are detected. The FSI currently generates satellite-based forest fire alerts using the AQUA and Suomi-NPP foreign satellites.
How are forest fires prevented and managed?
1. Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change is the Nodal Ministry for disaster management caused by forest fire, water pollution and hazardous substances in the country. Since forests are managed by the SFDs, responsibility of forest fire prevention and management lies primarily with the respective States.
2. Ministry supports the efforts of State/UT Governments in prevention and control of forest fire by providing financial assistance for various forest fire prevention and management measures under the Centrally Sponsored Forest Fire Prevention and Management Scheme, Development of Wildlife Habitats, and under Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority.
3. MoEFCC lists the following methods to prevent and control a forest fire: construction of watch towers for early detection; construction of water conservation structures; deployment of fire watchers; involvement of local communities, and the creation and maintenance of fire lines.
4. Use of remote sensing technology and Moderate Resolution Imagine Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite data for detection of active forest fires is also advised.
5. According to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) website, two types of fire lines are in practice – Kachha or covered fire lines and Pucca or open fire lines. In Kaccha fire lines, the undergrowth and shrubs are removed while trees are retained to decrease the fuel load. The Pucca fire lines are clear felled areas separating a forest/compartment/block from another to control the spread of potential fires.
6. The FSI website says: “Satellite based remote sensing technology and GIS tools have been effective in better prevention and management of fires through creation of early warning for fire prone areas, monitoring fires on a real time basis and estimation of burnt scars.”
What is the impact of forest fires?— Forest fires are not always ecologically harmful. In some fire-adapted ecosystems, low-intensity, naturally occurring fires can clear accumulated dry biomass, help nutrient cycling and support the regeneration of certain fire-adapted plant species. — However, high intensity forests fires lead to not only high carbon dioxide emissions but also a host of other greenhouse gases such as carbon monoxide, methane hydrocarbons, nitric oxide and nitrous oxide, that lead to global warming and ozone layer depletion. Loss of stored carbon reduces the capacity of forests to act as carbon sinks and turns them into carbon source (a process called carbon flipping), a stark example being Amazon rainforest. — Intense fires disrupt ecosystems, cause loss of vegetation, flora and fauna. Burning of vegetation and organic matter can reduce soil quality and increase soil erosion, particularly on steep Himalayan slopes. Damage to forests can affect agriculture, tourism, infrastructure and local economies. — People may be exposed to respiratory issues, eye irritation etc. as smoke releases particulate matter and other pollutants, affecting air quality and human health. |
BEYOND THE NUGGET: National Action Plan on Forest Fire (NAPFF)
1. As per MoEFCC, the NAPFF was prepared with the objective to minimize forest fires by informing, enabling and empowering forest fringe communities and incentivizing them to work in tandem with the State Forest Departments.
2. The Plan also intends to substantially reduce the vulnerability of forests across the diverse forest ecosystems in the country against fire hazards, enhance the capabilities of forest personnel and institutions in fighting fires, and speed up recovery after a fire event.
3. The Ministry has also constituted the Central Monitoring Committee for overseeing implementation of the National Action Plan on Forest Fire.
Post Read Question
Consider the following statements regarding forest fires:
1. Ground fires primarily burn organic material beneath the vegetation.
2. Surface fires mainly involve dry leaves, branches and other materials on the forest floor.
3. Crown fires spread from one tree top to another and are characterised by intense heat.
4. Crown fires are the most common type of forest fire in India.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1, 2 and 3 only
(c) 2, 3 and 4 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4
Answer: (b)
(Sources: House panel calls for new satellite to monitor forest fires in Himalayan region, Himachal forest fires surge to 248, Mandi worst hit this summer, Uttarakhand forest fire: How are forest fires caused and how frequent are they in India?)
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Raveena Baneta is a consultant with the UPSC section of The Indian Express where she writes on Ethic... Read More
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