With the onset of summer season, the number of forest fires in Salyan has increased . In the months of Chait and Baisakh alone, 100 community and national forests have been set on fire . The fires have damaged more than 6,000 hectares of forest . The number of forest fires has increased with the onset of summer season due to human negligence . 

According to the data of the Division Forest Office Salyan, fires have broken out in 34 community forests in various places of Bangad Kupinde Municipality, 17 in Sharda Municipality, 17 in Kalimati Rural Municipality, 16 in Chhatreshwori, 6 in Kapurkot and 16 in Triveni Rural Municipality in the district . The forest fires were brought under control due to two days of rain on Saturday and Sunday. Now, fires have started breaking out again . 

Although the Division Forest Office Salyan has been conducting fire control programs every year, they have not been effective . Due to the ineffectiveness of the control program, half a dozen houses and more than a dozen pipes of drinking water schemes in some places of the district have been destroyed by fire this year. Hundreds of small plants have been destroyed, while the habitat of wild animals and birds has been devastated. Dozens of settlements are at risk due to the fires that occur every year.

In some places, locals are facing problems with drinking water after the fire burned pipes and affected the springs, while families whose houses were burned have been affected. Despite the recent rains, the air pollution due to the smoke from the fires has not been completely controlled, resulting in an increase in eye and asthma patients in the district.

Mitralal Rijal, Ward Chairman of Kalimati Rural Municipality-7, said that with the onset of the summer season, forest fires have been raging since the last week of Chaitra and so far, 8/10 community forests in the ward have been affected. ‘Some forests in the ward are still burning,’ he said, ‘this is polluting the environment.’ According to him, settlements near the forest are at risk due to the fire, while Bhade Rana’s house and the pipe of the drinking water scheme in Dhule have been destroyed by fire.

Bhade Rana said that after all the food and clothes in the house were burnt to ashes, it was difficult for him to live and eat. ‘The local people are facing a problem with drinking water,’ he said, ‘The smoke from the fire is also seriously affecting the health of the locals due to the lack of rainfall in the vicinity of Ghuiyabari.’

Purna Bhandari of Chhatreshwari Rural Municipality-5 said that after a 700-meter pipe burned in the community forest, they had to carry water from the spring in jugs for a week. He said that there were fires in seven community forests within the ward. According to her, houses near the forest have barely been saved due to the fire.

Last week, a fierce fire broke out in the community forest in Sharda Municipality-4 for a few days and people fled after reaching the settlement. She informed that the fire damaged two houses and put dozens of houses and technical schools at risk. 'We were able to control the fire with the efforts of the police, army, armed forces and locals for more than five hours and water from tankers,' she said.

Ranger Kamala Gharti of Kapurkot Range Post said that four people, including herself, were injured while extinguishing the fire after the fire broke out in the community forest in Ward No. 5 and the settlement was at high risk. She also shared the sad story of having to use a broom to extinguish the fire due to the lack of fire extinguishing equipment.

Forest fires are occurring due to human negligence and since there is no fire control equipment, the police inspector Purna KC, information officer at the District Police Office, Salyan, said that they are now having to put out the fires at the risk of their lives. He complained that despite demanding various modern materials for fire control, the concerned bodies have not been able to provide them as required.