Lok Sabha Question No. 2975 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-08-03
Subject: Forest Fires
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: SISIR KUMAR ADHIKARI, MANSHANKAR NINAMA, ANJU BALA, P. KUMAR, Tejpratap Singh,Yadav

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 2975

TO BE ANSWERED ON 03.08.2018

## Forest Fires

## 2975.  SHRI SISIR KUMAR ADHIKARI:

SHRI MANSHANKAR NINAMA:

SHRIMATI ANJU BALA:

SHRI P. KUMAR:

SHRI TEJ PRATAP SINGH YADAV:

Will  the  Minister  of  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND  CLIMATE  CHANGE  be  pleased to state:

- (a) whether the  forest  fire  destroys  forest  wealth  including  wildlife  in  various  parts  of  the country;
- (b) if so, the details thereof during the last three years and the current year, State/ UT-wise;
- (c) whether the Government has conducted any study to assess the extent of loss caused due to forest fires and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether the Government has received satellite alerts for such fires and if so, the satellite alerts received during the last three years and action taken thereon;
- (e) whether 90 per cent of the forest fires in the country are man-made and the fire is set on to  destroy  evidence  of  nonperformance  of  forest  departments,  and  also  for  the  refinancing  of  plantations  and  if  so,  the  details  thereof  along  with  the  other  reasons identified for forest fires; and
- (f) whether the Government has formulated any action plan to effectively control the forest fires  during  the  summer  months,  if  so,  the  details  thereof  and  the  steps  taken  by  the Government forest management in the country?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE (DR. MAHESH SHARMA)

- (a),(b)& (c) Forests are home to large number of flora and fauna including birds, reptiles, insects, butterflies etc. in addition to large animals. The forest fire does cause damage to the flora  and  fauna  which  constitutes  the  forest  wealth.  However,  due  to  various preventive measures for forest fire management by the forest department in the state the loss of forest wealth is reduced to great extent. Though the incidences of forest fires have been reported during fire seasons in the form of forest fire alerts provided by  Forest  Survey  of  India,  no  death  of  wild  animals  due  to  forest  fire  has  been reported  by  the  State  Governments  and  the  Government  has  not  conducted  any special study in this regard.
- (d) Forest Survey of India (FSI), Dehradun, a subordinate organization of this Ministry in collaboration with National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), Hyderabad, disseminates forest fire alerts detected using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectro-

Radiometer  (MODIS) sensor  aboard  Aqua  and  Terra  satellites  on  a  near-real  time basis to  the  State  Forest  Departments  and  other  registered  users.  The  State  &  UTwise number of forest fire alerts disseminated are given in Annexure-I.

- Majority of forest fire is caused by anthropogenic reasons. The fire materials in the form of dried leaves and grasses, bushes, pine needles etc. accumulates on the floor and is potential fire hazards. The most common reason of forest fire include burning of forest floor for fresh flush of grass for grazing, discarded cigarettes, sparks from equipment and vehicles etc. The fires used for cooking in the forest area by labourers are also responsible for forest fire. Wildfires also occurs in communities practicing

Nothing has been reported by the state governments where the forest has been put on fire to destroy evidences of non-performance of forest department and for refinancing

- (e) shifting cultivation, where land is cleared for farming. of plantation activities.
- (f) The Ministry has formulated National Action Plan on Forest Fire and circulated to all State/UT  Governments  for  taking  appropriate  action  for  effective  prevention  and management of forest fire. Further,  the  Ministry  supports  the  efforts  of  State/Union  Territory  Governments  in prevention  and  control  of  forest  fire  by  providing  financial  assistance  for  various forest fire prevention and management measures such as creation and maintenance of fire  lines  in  forest  areas,  engagement  of  fire  watchers,  creation  of  water  storage structures in forest areas, strengthening of forest infrastructure, procurement of fire fighting  equipments,  Soil  and  Moisture  Conservation  (SMC)  works  in  high  risk areas, awareness creation, incentivizing villages/communities for protection against forest fire etc. under the Centrally Sponsored Forest Fire Prevention and Management (FPM) Scheme. The details of fund released to State/ UT Governments for various forest protection measures including forest fire prevention and management  under  the  erstwhile  Intensification  of  Forest  Management  Scheme (IFMS)  and  the  ongoing  Forest  Fire  Prevention  and  Management  (FPM)  Scheme during the last three years is given in Annexure-II.

*******

ANNEXURE-I

ANNEXURE  REFFERED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PART  (D)  OF  THE  LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED  QUESTION  No.  2975  DUE  FOR  03.08.2018  REGARDING  FOREST FIRES  ASKED  BY  SHRI  SISIR  KUMAR  ADHIKARI,  SHRI  MANSHANKAR NINAMA,  SHRIMATI  ANJU  BALA,  SHRI  P.  KUMAR  AND  SHRI  TEJ  PRATAP SINGH YADAV

| S. No.   | States/UTs               | 2015   | 2016   | 2017   |
|----------|--------------------------|--------|--------|--------|
| 1        | Andaman &Nicobar Islands | 1      | 24     | 8      |
| 2        | Andhra Pradesh           | 1,075  | 1,699  | 1877   |
| 3        | Arunachal Pradesh        | 358    | 293    | 733    |
| 4        | Assam                    | 1,656  | 1,766  | 1877   |
| 5        | Bihar                    | 45     | 321    | 272    |
| 6        | Chandigarh               | 0      | -      | 1      |
| 7        | Chhattisgarh             | 1,272  | 2,808  | 4373   |
| 8        | Dadra &Nagar Haveli      | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 9        | Daman &Diu               | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 10       | Delhi                    | 0      | 2      | 5      |
| 11       | Goa                      | 0      | 10     | 32     |
| 12       | Gujarat                  | 117    | 262    | 574    |
| 13       | Haryana                  | 6      | 43     | 185    |
| 14       | Himachal Pradesh         | 22     | 199    | 170    |
| 15       | Jammu &Kashmir           | 13     | 217    | 113    |
| 16       | Jharkhand                | 457    | 740    | 1133   |
| 17       | Karnataka                | 295    | 831    | 1333   |
| 18       | Kerala                   | 91     | 165    | 456    |
| 19       | Lakshadweep              | 0      | 0      | 0      |
| 20       | Madhya Pradesh           | 294    | 2,675  | 4781   |
| 21       | Maharashtra              | 721    | 1,874  | 3487   |
| 22       | Manipur                  | 1,286  | 1,105  | 1094   |
| 23       | Meghalaya                | 1,373  | 966    | 1454   |
| 24       | Mizoram                  | 2,468  | 1,318  | 1587   |
| 25       | Nagaland                 | 722    | 678    | 930    |
| 26       | Odisha                   | 1,467  | 2,763  | 4416   |
| 27       | Puducherry               | 0      | 0      | 9      |
| 28       | Punjab                   | 7      | 45     | 320    |
| 29       | Rajasthan                | 90     | 66     | 260    |
| 30       | Sikkim                   | 3      | 0      | 8      |
| 31       | Tamil Nadu               | 95     | 113    | 301    |
| 32       | Telangana                | 1,052  | 1,154  | 1748   |
| 33       | Tripura                  | 476    | 346    | 431    |
| 34       | Uttar Pradesh            | 130    | 691    | 1170   |
| 35       | Uttarakhand              | 207    | 1,501  | 376    |
| 36       | West Bengal              | 138    | 142    | 364    |
|          | Grand Total              | 15,937 | 24,817 | 35,888 |

ANNEXURE-II

ANNEXURE  REFFERED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PART  (F)  OF  THE  LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED  QUESTION  No.  2975  DUE  FOR  03.08.2018  REGARDING  FOREST FIRES  ASKED  BY  SHRI  SISIR  KUMAR  ADHIKARI,  SHRI  MANSHANKAR NINAMA,  SHRIMATI  ANJU  BALA,  SHRI  P.  KUMAR  AND  SHRI  TEJ  PRATAP SINGH YADAV

(Rs. In Lakhs)

| S. No.            | States            | 2015-16 (Amount Released)   | 2016-17 (Amount Released)   | 2017-18 (Amount Released )   |
|-------------------|-------------------|-----------------------------|-----------------------------|------------------------------|
| Other States      | Other States      |                             |                             |                              |
| 1                 | Andhra Pradesh    | 0.00                        | 0.00                        | 0.00                         |
| 2                 | Bihar             | 59.09                       | 88.59                       | 75.00                        |
| 3                 | Chhattisgarh      | 120.75                      | 211.04                      | 168.00                       |
| 4                 | Gujarat           | 179.99                      | 122.26                      | 75.00                        |
| 5                 | Goa               | 0.00                        | 0.00                        | 0.00                         |
| 6                 | Haryana           | 77.86                       | 93.91                       | 75.00                        |
| 7                 | Himachal Pradesh  | 302.16                      | 331.36                      | 276.70                       |
| 8                 | Jammu &Kashmir    | 193.93                      | 95.61                       | 75.00                        |
| 9                 | Jharkhand         | 83.62                       | 199.63                      | 105.00                       |
| 10                | Karnataka         | 228.19                      | 203.27                      | 105.00                       |
| 11                | Kerala            | 86.00                       | 163.65                      | 234.53                       |
| 12                | Madhya Pradesh    | 420.00                      | 281.15                      | 168.00                       |
| 13                | Maharashtra       | 447.32                      | 372.58                      | 321.58                       |
| 14                | Orissa            | 136.00                      | 266.14                      | 168.00                       |
| 15                | Punjab            | 77.00                       | 0.00                        | 75.00                        |
| 16                | Rajasthan         | 112.54                      | 174.22                      | 105.00                       |
| 17                | Tamil Nadu        | 203.02                      | 74.29                       | 105.00                       |
| 18                | Telangana         | 0.00                        | 0.00                        | 105.00                       |
| 19                | Uttar Pradesh     | 156.15                      | 139.72                      | 75.00                        |
| 20                | Uttarakhand       | 356.83                      | 304.03                      | 168.00                       |
| 21                | West Bengal       | 0.00                        | 92.83                       | 75.00                        |
|                   | Total             | 3240.45                     | 3214.28                     | 2554.81                      |
| NE& Sikkim        | NE& Sikkim        |                             |                             |                              |
| 1                 | Assam             | 0                           | 0                           | 0                            |
| 2                 | Arunachal Pradesh | 85.07                       | 181.34                      | 102.00                       |
| 3                 | Manipur           | 240.76                      | 125.02                      | 110.00                       |
| 4                 | Meghalaya         | 180.26                      | 126.57                      | 219.88                       |
| 5                 | Mizoram           | 153.17                      | 131.29                      | 90.59                        |
| 6                 | Nagaland          | 122.6                       | 170.01                      | 92.56                        |
| 7                 | Sikkim            | 150                         | 119.73                      | 148.59                       |
| 8                 | Tripura           | 147.19                      | 190.76                      | 66.00                        |
|                   | Total             | 1079.05                     | 1044.72                     | 824.25                       |
| Union Territories | Union Territories |                             |                             |                              |
| 1                 | A &NIslands       | 28.00                       | 56.23                       | 9.00                         |
| 2                 | Chandigarh        | 36.99890                    | 74.52                       | 8.00                         |
| 3                 | D&NHaveli         | 0.00                        | 0.00                        | 0.00                         |
| 4                 | Daman &Diu        | 0.00                        | 0.00                        | 0.00                         |
| 5                 | Lakshadweep       | 0.00                        | 0.00                        | 0.00                         |
| 6                 | New Delhi         | 0.00                        | 50.00                       | 30.00                        |
| 7                 | Pondicherry       | 0.00                        | 0.00                        | 30.00                        |
|                   | Total             | 64.99890                    | 180.75                      | 77.00                        |
|                   | Grand Total       | 4384.49890                  | 4439.75                     | 3456.06                      |