A massive wildfire has engulfed forest areas in Adibadri and Bartoli in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district, with panicked villagers accusing the forest department of ignoring the destruction that could trigger future ecological disasters.

“Some women first noticed a fire near Adibadri on Monday and tried their best to put it out. But gradually it intensified. On Wednesday, we noticed the blaze in the adjoining forest of Bartoli. The fire has now taken over a dozen patches of forest.

“It appears that the entire green area will be engulfed by the fire. We had informed the forest department on Tuesday but a response from them is awaited,” said Kusum Kandari, former chief of the Kandara panchayat. “We can’t breathe properly. Our eyes are itching because of the smoke and fire. We don’t know where to go to protect ourselves.”

The wildfire has also spread to forests on the outskirts of villages, including Narayanbagda, Jakh-Kadakot, Bedgam, Manur, Tentuda and Talaser.

Parmendra Kandari, a Bartoli resident, said: “We were opposing the road-widening activities in the area because it was undertaken after destroying forests. The fire is a blessing in disguise for the government. This could be the reason why they don’t appear interested in dousing it.”

Akhilesh Bhatt, the Chamoli forest ranger, said they had sent teams to douse the fire. “Firefighting teams are working to put out the blaze. We hope to succeed soon,” he said.