Summary:
"For the past three weeks, there have been regular fire incidents in Panvel region and other parts of Navi Mumbai. We strongly suspect that unknown trespassers are deliberately setting dry grass on fire, which is why the fire quickly spreads and destroys the biodiversity. This is such a shame," said activist Anarjit Chauhan.The Navi Mumbai fire brigade rushed to the Nerul site to extinguish the flames, while the Kharghar fire brigade battled the blaze on the Kharghar hill.Citizens have again urged the forest authority to strictly deal with the culprits who are regularly causing such widespread damage. Just yesterday (Monday), the mangroves next to Vashi railway station were set afire, while fire was also reported in the forest hill between Harigram and Kevale in Panvel taluka. A city based forest official said that they will lodge an FIR in these cases under the Environment Protection Act, 1986, and further investigate the matter..