Growing fires, losing livelihoods

On Wednesday, 6 people were injured in a fire in Puthauttarganga Rural Municipality-3 Ranma of Rukum East. According to Rukum East police chief DSP Madhavraj Kharel, the locals who were involved in the construction of a road from Ranma village to Chatra Bhir were caught in the fire. Locals say that the fire broke out when the stones that fell from Bhir collided while digging the goreto.

On Thursday, three children who went to pick mushrooms in the community forest near their home in Tripurasundari Municipality-4 of Dolpa fell into a fire and were seriously injured. According to Tulsi Prasad Dahal, chief district officer of Dolpa, all three people have been brought to the district hospital. In the first week of March, local Nandram Choulagai and his 12-year-old daughter Hemanti lost their lives when a fire broke out in Navadurga Community Forest located in Khadachakra-5 of Kalikot.

In Karnali, the number of people injured and property lost due to fire incidents is high. In the last 3 years, there have been 452 fire incidents across Karnali province, 40 people have died and 52 have been injured. According to the data of the provincial police office, the loss of 562.5 million rupees was caused when 502 houses were destroyed by fire. According to the office, there were 144 fire incidents this year, 14 people died and 12 people were injured and the damage was about 12 million. "Because most of the houses in the hilly areas are made of mud and thatched roofs, fire spreads quickly," Karnali Province Police Chief DIG Lalmani Acharya said.

In the Himalayan district of Karnali, most of the houses are made of wood and even if the height of the room is low, the fire spreads quickly. He said that most of the local levels do not have fire fighting equipment, there is a delay in reaching the scene due to geographical difficulties, fire extinguishers and water sources are not near, causing great damage. Red Cross worker Nar Bahadur Nepali said that due to the lack of water and technology, there is a huge loss due to fires in the hilly districts every year. "Fire damage is greater than other disasters," he said, "preparation and caution are the main reasons for its prevention." Last year, 20-year-old Nandram Vick of Bamfikot-4 in Rukum West was seriously injured while fighting a fire in the local Bheripokhara community forest. He passed the written examination for the post of Nepal police officer and was preparing for the interview. He was caught in a fire and it took almost 3 months for him to fully recover. "I missed the interview after the incident, I couldn't get a job, now I have to live a crippled life," he said, "Now I can't even do small jobs, I have to rely on my parents to earn a living." Neeraj Shrestha, information officer of the Ministry of Industry, Tourism, Forest and Environment of Karnali Province, said that the damage is increasing. "There is a big problem when the consumer starts a fire in the forest because of the greed of the grass to grow well, the information comes only after 1/2 hour of the fire, and it is under control," he said. Even if the fires lit for the purpose of forest feast are not extinguished, the forest area is destroyed.''

According to the ministry, fires are currently taking place in about 31 community forests in different districts. According to the ministry's data, there are 9 community forest fires in Salyan. According to the ministry, this year 14 community forest fires have caused damage to around 2,100 hectares. This year, 24 people have been prosecuted for their involvement in arson.

Daily fire in Koshi

In Dhankuta municipality-3 Kagate last Sunday, local Raju Shrestha's 3-year-old Vivek lost his life due to a fire near his house. Shrestha's 10-year-old son Roshan is seriously injured in the fire. He is being treated at a hospital in Biratnagar.

On Thursday, local Chandra Bahadur Magar's Ekatele house was completely destroyed when a fire engulfed a slum in Dhankuta Municipality-9 Salleri. On Monday, three houses were burnt down when a fire broke out from Arare Community Forest of Ward-1 in Chasmitar of Tuwachung Municipality-3, Khotang Halesi. On Tuesday, a fire broke out in the kitchen house of Majebul Mian of Gauriganj Rural Municipality-6 Kanchira in south-west Jhapa, causing a loss of 125,000. Police said that the motorcycle kept in the kitchen was completely destroyed by fire.

Fire incidents are happening daily in Koshi province. Fires have caused not only forest and wildlife but also human losses. According to the Provincial Police Office, Biratnagar, 1,086 fire incidents have occurred in Koshi in 9 months of the current financial year. In which 15 people have died. 110 people were injured. 466 households have been directly affected. 65 crores more material property has been damaged. According to the police, 7 people died and 22 people were injured in 465 fire incidents in February and March of the current financial year alone. 35 crore 2 million has been damaged.

Most of the fire incidents are due to electrical short. According to the police, there have been some incidents of fire even when children were playing. According to the police, carelessness like burning straw, wilding, smoking cigarettes in the forest and mixing randomly are causing fires. Forest officer Akhilesh Kumar Gupta, spokesperson of the Ministry of Tourism, Forests and Environment of Koshi Province, says that work is being done to control the fire through the Divisional Forest Office. Gupta informed that the 15 division forest offices of Koshi spend a minimum budget of 5 lakhs for fire management.

According to the Ministry of Tourism, Forests and Environment, there have been fires in 261 places of Koshi in about 8 thousand 151.22 hectares of land this year. In which 67 houses/farms have been damaged. Damage to trees and livestock has also been reported. The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Law has been providing relief to the fire victims under the Disaster Management Fund. Minister Shamsher Rai said that under the fund, Rs 15,000 will be given for damage up to Rs 5 lakh, Rs 30,000 for damage up to Rs 10 lakh and Rs 50,000 for damage over Rs 10 lakh.

Fire in the park, fire in the slums

A big fire broke out in the area where there are sal trees in the Chitwan National Park, which is the main habitat of the rare wild animal tiger-rhino. As a result of the fire spreading in the park and forest area, there is a hazy atmosphere in the settlement and market area of ​​Chitwan. The problem of eye irritation and burning has been observed in the locals. This kind of smoke is more spread in Chitwan Park and Jungle Aadka settlements of Barandabhar area.

The park office claims that the fire that spread in the central and western areas of the park since Saturday has been decreasing since Monday. The fire was at its height till Monday around the headquarters Aadko Kasara, which is considered to be the central area of ​​the eastern park, from Devital in Chure Pahad Khoch in the western area of ​​the park. It was not just the surface of the ground that was on fire, but the top of the dead trees could be seen burning. However, Conservation Officer Ganesh Tiwari, who is the information officer of the park, claimed that the fire has subsided.

There was a fire problem in the eastern part of the park two months ago. Tiwari said that there are now fires in the western region and around Kasara. He says that the sal forest area is more affected by the fire than the grassland area. Vasu Bidari, a conservationist who has been working as a nature guide for tourists in the park for 36 years, says that this time the fire in the park is bigger than other years. At this time, birds build nests and lay eggs and hatch babies. Ground nesting birds have been challenged by wildfires. Along with the nest, the eggs, baby, and mother are killed," Bidari said.

Another old guide Uday Aryal says that the problem of fire is seen every year in the park. He said that even in places like Chitwan Park where the entry of people is restricted, the cause of the fire should be seriously investigated. Nature guide Bidari says that the creatures/animals that fled away from the fire place in fear will not come back quickly. Therefore, there is a danger that the fire will affect tourism as well.