A massive fire broke out on Monday afternoon in the Vattavada forest region of Idukki, destroying several acres of forest land. The fire broke out within the proposed Neelakurinji sanctuary of the Kambakallu-Kadavari region of Idukki.
Large swaths of eucalyptus plantations have been gutted in the fire, which officials believe is man made. Officials say the fire has been brought under control but has yet to be extinguished completed. Firefighters are working to douse the fire in the sanctuary area of Vattavada.
"As per our primary investigation, 15 hectares of eucalyptus plantation have been gutted," a Forest Department official told TNM. Authorities allege that the fire was started by the land mafia in an effort to prevent the land from being taken over by the proposed Neelakurinji sanctuary.
Alakar Raja, a native of Vattavada, said, "We can see the fire from Vattavada. Last night we witnessed a massive fire in the 58th block of proposed sanctuary area."
In March, a six-day long forest fire raged through Pazhathottam, Jandamala, Kadavari, Anamala and Pampadum Shola National Park. Nearly 1,000 hectares of forest, plantations and grasslands were destroyed in the wildfire. "The Forest Department has registered three cases in connection with the man-made forest fires. We will conduct a detailed probe into the issue," the forest official said.
Animals forced to migrate
The forest fires have forced wild animals to migrate from their habitats in the Munnar forest to the Amaravathi forest in Tamil Nadu and human habitations in Munnar.
Last week, herds of wild elephants and bisons entered human settlements in Kundala near Vattavada. “The wild animal migrations show the forest fire has severely affected the natural habitat of wild animals," officials said.
The Forest Department says it plans to create “fire breaks” in an effort to prevent forest fires in the state.
Field director Kottayam Georgy P Mathachen said that the Forest Department uses felled trees to create fire breaks that serve to prevent canopy fires from spreading.
Mathachen explains, "The Forest Department typically uses fire lines to prevent forest fires. But the fire lines do not help to prevent forest fires in the plantation areas due to the width of the canopy of the deep forests. The tree break technique will help to prevent large forest fires."