Summary:
NAVI MUMBAI: A fire erupted inside the protected mangroves in Nerul , next to the busy Palm Beach Road on Sunday afternoon.This is the third blaze in this wetland area in the past seven days.Even as the Navi Mumbai fire brigade rushed to the site to put off the flames, the local Nerul residents complained of smoke and carcinogenic fumes affecting them. "The fire spreads repidly in the area not only due to dry grass, but because of the presence of inflammable materials like thermocol and plastic illegally dumped inside the mangroves. This is a very serious issue as the fire has occurred repeatedly in this region. Only if the forest officials deal sternly with the culprits and book them under the stringent forest laws will this menace stop," said RTI activist Anarjit Chouhan.Fire brigade officials stated that they received the fire call around 2pm and then sent a team to the spot to extinguish the flames.Range forest officer (RFO) Prakash Chaudhari had earlier told TOI that they have already lodged a formal complaint in this matter and further investigation is on to find the culprits.Locals also pointed out that many green and healthy trees in the area were badly damaged due to the fire..