Lok Sabha Question No. 2918 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-08-07
Subject: Damage due to Forest Fire
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Ramya  Haridas, Talari Rangaiah, Shashi Tharoor

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2918

TO BE ANSWERED ON 07.08.2023

## Damage due to Forest Fire

2918.   MS. RAMYA HARIDAS: DR. TALARI RANGAIAH: DR. SHASHI THAROOR:

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

- (a) whether the forest fires have increased during the last five years, if so, the details of loss occurred in the forests;
- (b) whether the Government is aware of the increasing incidents of forest fires in various States particularly in the Vagamon region of Kerala State;
- (c) whether  the  Government  has  made  efforts  to  identify  the  causes  and  prepared  an action plan to tackle the increasing incidence of forest fires in the country including Kerala, if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor;
- (d) whether several endangered reptiles were reported charred in the forest fires in various States;
- (e) whether  the  raging  fire  is  destroying  the  ecosystem  of  forests,  shrinking  animal habitats and disrupting the food chain leading to migration of wild animals and birds from their habitats to other places for safety; and
- (f) whether  a  large  number  of  animals  have  migrated  from  the  north  division  to  the southern parts of the States due to forest fire incidents and if so, the details thereof and corrective steps being taken in this regard?

## ANSWER

MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE

(SHRI ASHWINI KUMAR CHOUBEY)

(a)  The  State/UT-wise  number  of  forest  fire  detected  by  Forest  Survey  of  India,  Dehradun using SNPP-VIIRS (Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership -Visible and lnfrared lmager Radiometer Suite) sensor over the last five years is given in Annexure-I .

(b) As per the report received from State Government of Kerala, the details of area affected by forest fire in Vagamon area of Kottayam forest division during 2017-18 to 2022-23 is given in Annexure-II . During 2021-22 and 2022-23, no forest areas has been reported to be damaged in Vagamon area of Kerala State.

(c)   The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has prepared National Action Plan  on  Forest  Fire  to  enhance  the  preparedness,  control  and  response  measures  to  tackle forest fires by state forest departments. The National Action Plan prioritizes on empowering forest  fringe  communities  and  incentivizing  them  to  work  in  tandem  with  the  Forest Departments to prevent and control forest fires; reducing the vulnerability of forests against fire  hazards; enhancing the  capabilities of forest personnel and institutions in fighting fires; and restoration of forest fire affected areas.

The Ministry supports the efforts of the States/ UTs in prevention and control of forest fire by providing financial assistance under the Centrally  Sponsored Forest Fire Prevention and Management Scheme, CAMPA and under Development of Wildlife Habitat schemes. These schemes provide  support  to  the  state  forest  departments  towards  forest  fire  prevention  and mitigation  activities  including,  creation  and  maintenance  of  fire  lines,  water  conservation structures,  procurement  of  firefighting  equipment,  awareness  creation,  and  incentivizing village communities for protection against forest fire etc.

(d)  As  per  the  report  received  from  the  various  State  Governments,  no  major  incident  of mortality of reptiles is reported in fire incidents.

(e)  and  (f)  As  per  the  report  received  from  various  State  Governments,  the  forest  fire  are mostly ground fires that are sporadic and not enveloping large areas within the landscape. The fuel load in majority of the fire prone areas are dried grasses, which quickly regenerate during monsoons. So far, no lasting damages are noticed due to forest fires resulting in migration of animals and birds from their habitats.

****

## Annexure referred to part (a)  and  part (b)  of  the  Lok  Sabha  Unstarred Question  no. 2918 due for reply on 07.08.2023 regarding 'Damage due to Forest Fire'.

State/UT-wise number of forest fire detected by Forest Survey of India using SNPP-VIIRS sensor in the last five years. (This includes large, continuous and repeated forest fires)

| S.No.   | State/UT                        | Nov 2018 to June 2019   | Nov 2019 to June 2020   | Nov 2020 to June 2021   | Nov 2021 to June 2022   | Nov 2022 to June 2023   |
|---------|---------------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|-------------------------|
| 1       | Andaman& Nicobar Islands        | 37                      | 39                      | 16                      | 33                      | 20                      |
| 2       | Andhra Pradesh                  | 15,746                  | 9,996                   | 19,328                  | 14,138                  | 19,367                  |
| 3       | Arunachal Pradesh               | 2,617                   | 1,786                   | 3,914                   | 3,449                   | 2,447                   |
| 4       | Assam                           | 5,935                   | 8,924                   | 10,718                  | 8,158                   | 9,830                   |
| 5       | Bihar                           | 2,450                   | 614                     | 5,179                   | 3,024                   | 3,793                   |
| 6       | Chandigarh                      | 0                       | 2                       | 0                       | 0                       | 1                       |
| 7       | Chhattisgarh                    | 25,750                  | 6,360                   | 38,106                  | 25,792                  | 20,306                  |
| 8       | Dadra &Nagar Haveli             | 19                      | 21                      | 33                      | 15                      | 15                      |
| 9       | Daman& Diu                      | 2                       | 0                       | 1                       | 3                       | 1                       |
| 10      | Delhi                           | 20                      | 21                      | 14                      | 3                       | 7                       |
| 11      | Goa                             | 140                     | 47                      | 45                      | 20                      | 147                     |
| 12      | Gujarat                         | 2,885                   | 2,770                   | 3,803                   | 2,769                   | 2,342                   |
| 13      | Haryana                         | 135                     | 68                      | 152                     | 135                     | 82                      |
| 14      | Himachal Pradesh                | 1,446                   | 536                     | 4,110                   | 5,280                   | 704                     |
| 15      | Jammu &Kashmir including Ladakh | 661                     | 438                     | 1,098                   | 4,282                   | 151                     |
| 16      | Jharkhand                       | 6,221                   | 2,613                   | 21,713                  | 9,419                   | 11,923                  |
| 17      | Karnataka                       | 8,078                   | 4,232                   | 5,784                   | 4,973                   | 13,074                  |
| 18      | Kerala                          | 1,162                   | 864                     | 296                     | 504                     | 1,550                   |
| 19      | Lakshadweep                     | 0                       | 0                       | 0                       | 0                       | 0                       |
| 20      | Madhya Pradesh                  | 22,108                  | 9,537                   | 47,795                  | 32,728                  | 17,142                  |
| 21      | Maharashtra                     | 26,939                  | 14,018                  | 34,025                  | 22,052                  | 16,119                  |
| 22      | Manipur                         | 7,384                   | 8,800                   | 10,457                  | 5,544                   | 10,127                  |
| 23      | Meghalaya                       | 5,797                   | 6,762                   | 7,658                   | 6,322                   | 6,604                   |
| 24      | Mizoram                         | 7,597                   | 7,361                   | 12,846                  | 8,734                   | 5,798                   |
| 25      | Nagaland                        | 2,898                   | 2,905                   | 4,975                   | 3,471                   | 3,882                   |
| 26      | Odisha                          | 19,159                  | 10,602                  | 51,968                  | 22,014                  | 33,461                  |
| 27      | Puducherry                      | 4                       | 0                       | 1                       | 0                       | 0                       |
| 28      | Punjab                          | 214                     | 153                     | 635                     | 428                     | 119                     |
| 29      | Rajasthan                       | 3,025                   | 3,461                   | 3,402                   | 2,703                   | 2,059                   |
| 30      | Sikkim                          | 64                      | 47                      | 63                      | 26                      | 49                      |
| 31      | Tamil Nadu                      | 4,402                   | 1,368                   | 1,220                   | 1,035                   | 1,998                   |
| 32      | Telangana                       | 15,262                  | 12,132                  | 18,237                  | 13,737                  | 13,117                  |
| 33      | Tripura                         | 3,083                   | 4,369                   | 5,015                   | 2,609                   | 4,332                   |
| 34      | Uttar Pradesh                   | 4,428                   | 1,548                   | 8,608                   | 5,428                   | 3,235                   |
| 35      | Uttarakhand                     | 12,965                  | 759                     | 21,487                  | 12,985                  | 5,351                   |
| 36      | West Bengal                     | 1,653                   | 1,320                   | 3,287                   | 1,520                   | 3,096                   |
| Total   | Total                           | 2,10,286                | 1,24,473                | 3,45,989                | 2,23,333                | 2,12,249                |

Annexure referred to part (b) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question no. 2918 due for reply on 07.08.2023 regarding 'Damage due to Forest Fire'.

|   Sl. No. | Station              | Year    | Location       | Area (Ha)   |
|-----------|----------------------|---------|----------------|-------------|
|         1 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2017-18 | Vallikkunnu    | 2           |
|         2 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2017-18 | Avaranthadam   | 2.50        |
|         3 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2017-18 | Uluppooni      | 1.20        |
|         4 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2017-18 | Kolahalamedu   | 2.50        |
|         5 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2018-19 | Uluppooni      | 1.50        |
|         6 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2018-19 | Vellaramkunnu  | 4           |
|         7 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2018-19 | Uluppooni      | 3           |
|         8 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2019-20 | Vellaramkunnu  | 1.5         |
|         9 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2020-21 | Avaranthadam   | 5           |
|        10 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2020-21 | Vellaramchetta | 0.22        |
|        11 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2020-21 | Pallikkunnu    | 0.01        |
|        12 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2020-21 | Vellaramkunnu  | 1           |
|        13 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2020-21 | Avaranthadam   | 2           |
|        14 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2020-21 | Avaranthadam   | 2.12        |
|        15 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2020-21 | Vedikkuzhy     | 11          |
|        16 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2020-21 | Kavakkulam     | 0.06        |
|        17 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2021-22 | NIL            |             |
|        18 | Vandanpathal-Vagamon | 2022-23 | NIL            |             |