The month of March is on and the spring season in Odisha is yet to end. But the forests of the state are already on fire like those in the neighbouring states of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Bengal, all of them rich with tropical dry deciduous forests. The most worrying of all has been the one in the Simililpal tiger reserve, a jewel in the crown of Odisha as far as bio-diversity is concerned. 

Of course, unlike the sub-tropical or temperate forests in the foothills of Himalayas and many other parts of the world, they are not crown fires, which char even tall trees.

What causes these fires?
Tropical forests, beside their rich bio-diversity, are also a source of variety of fruits, flowers, grass, seeds, barks, roots and vines, known as NTFP (non-timber forest produce). The forest dwellers and surrounding population heavily depend on them for their sustenance. 
The state’s forests boast of mahua flowers and seeds, kusum seeds, sal seeds, mango, hill broom, sal leaves siali fibre, kendu fruits and leaves, thatch grass and many others which are collected by the people living in and around the forests. 

Incidentally, the wild fire season coincides with flowering and fruiting of most species that are collected by the local 
people. It is very difficult to collect these seeds or flowers if they fall on the forest floors, which are covered with grass, shrubs and herbs. 

Hence, the easiest way to clear them is to set fire to the vegetation surrounding the trees covered, taking advantage of dry leaves falling on the ground, which burn like petrol. But having set fire to a particular area, they do not take the trouble of extinguishing them and it spreads to very large areas, Sometimes, people walking through forest paths drop burning “bidis” or lighted torches carelessly without extinguishing them, which could also spread fire. Hence, most of the fires are man-made and can be prevented.

As mentioned earlier, tropical forest fires are only ground fires and do not burn trees. But they cause untold direct and indirect damage to the eco-system:

They destroy all herbs and shrubs besides seedlings of large trees in the entire area
nAll slow-moving small animals and reptiles that cannot outrun the speeding fire, apart from ground-dwelling birds, are killed and their eggs are destroyed

Due to repeated fires, the soil hardens and becomes unfit to hold seeds for germination
Moisture-holding capacity of the soil reduces and subsequent rain causes heavy erosion and flood
Sub-terrainian micro organisms are lost
Seasonal streams dry faster and the ambient heat of the locality increases to intolerable limits
Forest fires create scarcity of fodder and water for animals 
Such fires start close to villages and spread fast into deep forests. Incidentally, Similipal has 64 villages within its 2,250sqkm areas like most others forests of the state.
So, what are the methods adopted by the forest department to prevent forest fires?
Fire-watchers are appointed for five months during the fire season to form fire fighting squads to assist the forest staff douse fires. These squads are placed at various points to act as soon as they see fire. They are equipped with common fire-fighting tools
Fire lines are created at intervals and along ridges, nullahs, forest roads cleaning inflammable debris there to prevent the spread of fire and restrict it to specified areas.  Counter fire is also done from the opposite direction of fire to prevent its spread
Village forest committees and eco development committees are also sensitised and their support is enlisted to prevent fires close to the villages
In spite of all these and other innovative measures, it becomes quite difficult to prevent forest fires altogether and quite often, when we travel through valleys and hills, we see chains of forest fires lighting up the night sky.
So, what can we do to help?
Perhaps the most potent weapon is harnessing the support of village communities to the maximum strength by providing incentives to them at the end of the fire seasons for complete prevention of forest fires
Sensitising the people to extinguish any fire as they pass through the forest roads and paths before they spread
Using modern technology in the form of satellite imagery and improve communication system to alert the field staff immediately when fire starts
Mobility in hilly terrain is a major challenge and we need to find ways to overcome that
Additional vehicles - both four and two-wheelers -should be made available for the fast movement of fire fighting squads 

Modern and light fire fighting equipment should be made available to all the squads

It is heartening to know that this year, both print and electronic media have covered the topic of forest fires extensively. More sensitisation of the people living in the forest fringes along with the adoption of modern fire fighting technologies shall help bio-diversity to recover from the loss that has occurred, conserve soil and improve discharging of groundwater. It is not only Similipal but also all the national parks and sanctuaries of the state and other forest areas covering more than five million hectares -nearly one-third of the geographical area of the state - need urgent attention.