Nainital: In yet another incident of forest fire to be recorded in the hills, a blaze broke out in the jungles of Dalmothi - also known as Mini Corbett among local residents for its rich biodiversity - in Ranikhet, Almora. The forest department said that the fire, which erupted late on Saturday night, is estimated to have engulfed up to 10 hectares of forest land but was doused on Sunday.Umesh Chandra Pandey, Dalmothi range officer, said, “Around 8 to 10 hectares could have been gutted in the fire. It took 50 personnel of the forest department more than six hours to douse the flame. The fire could have been caused by a lit beedi.”The memory of last year’s devastating fires in the upper reaches of the state’s forests is still fresh in the minds of residents and the administration. Forest fires had ravaged the state's jungles leading to estimated losses of around 4,500 hectares of green cover and loss of over half a dozen lives.The fact that fires have begun well ahead of the expected period of high summer - during which outbreaks are at their peak - has people on edge.Residents in villages near Dalmothi fear that fires may drive wild animals closer to human territory. Dalmothi has a robust population of leopards, Himalayan black bear, deer and Monal among other species. The forest department had last year moved a proposal to establish a mini safari in the forest and promote the area along the lines of Corbett National Park.Bishan Singh Tanwal from Kalika near Dalmothi forest range said, “We are worried that animals fleeing wildfires may invade populated areas. It poses a danger to our lives as well as our crops which are often destroyed by bears.”Range officer Pandey said that the forest department had taken precautionary measures to keep such incidents at bay. “We are maintaining strict vigil through constant patrolling to prevent such incidents. Controlled burning, clearing of fire lines, keeping a tab on humidity level etc are other steps being taken to tackle forest fires,” Pandey said.Recently, in what has been described as the season’s first major forest fires, around one hectare of Nanda Devi Biosphere and a few meadows in Munsiyari near Pithoragarh have been gutted. Reports have also come of fires raging in forests of Bageshwar district in Kumaon leading to smoke and ash from the burning trees creating a haze in the area.In November last year, the Uttarakhand high court had taken an exceptionally strict stand on a petition related to rampant forest fires in the state in the summer of 2016. The court had ordered suspension of the divisional forest official if a forest fire in an area under his jurisdiction raged for more than 24 hours, of the conservator of forests if it continued for over 48 hours and finally the state forest chief if the fires were uncontrolled for more than 72 hours.

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