Bandipur forest fires | |
---|---|
Date(s) | 21 February 2019 – 25 February 2019 [1] |
Location | Chamarajanagar district, Karnataka in, India |
Coordinates | 11°39′42″N76°37′38″E / 11.66167°N 76.62722°E |
Statistics | |
Burned area | 4,419.54 hectares (10,920.9 acres) [1] |
Impacts | |
Deaths | Many creatures |
Ignition | |
Cause | act of sabotage |
In February 2019, major forest fires broke out in numerous places across the Bandipur National Park in Karnataka state in India. The National Remote Sensing Centre of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) carried out an assessment of the total area affected by the fire. On 25 February 2019, it estimated the extent of burnt area to be about 10,920 acres in the last five days from 21 February 2019. [2] [3] [4]
Though the major fire was brought under control by 24 February 2019, some areas continued to burn. The fire also spread to Mudumalai National Park in Tamil Nadu, causing damage to around 40 acres. The Tamil Nadu forest department took action to ensure that it did not spread further. [3] [5]
On 21 February 2019, a wildfire broke out in the Bandipur Tiger Reserve. Unlike in previous years, this was the first time the wildfire in Bandipur flared up earlier due to the sudden climatic change and rapid growth of dry grass and Lantana. Officials reported that there appeared to have been no deaths of the larger mammals in the park, such as bison, elephants, leopard and tiger. [6]
Over 10,000 acres of forest in Bandipur area was destroyed. With the fire spreading rapidly due to winds, the authorities closed the Gundlupet-Ooty National highway and safaris in Bandipur National Park were also cancelled. Strong winds were making the job of firefighters, forest staff and volunteers more difficult. [7]
The fire that destroyed Kundakere Range, spread to Barakatte and Guddakere, then to the Himavathi Gopalaswamy Hills. It also destroyed forests in Jarkal Kere and Gowri Kalu hills. Many smaller mammals and reptiles were killed, along with thousands of trees. There had been no forest-fire incidents noted in Bandipur National Park in the previous two years. [7]
Two Mi-17 Indian Air Force helicopters were deployed on 25 February 2019 afternoon to douse the fire, which had been raging for three days in the Bandipur Tiger Reserve. The operation on 25 February 2019 was primarily limited to the Gopalaswamy Hills Range in Karnataka's Chamarajanagar district. The other two ranges that were seriously affected were Kundakere and Bandipur. [8] The helicopters were deployed after Karnataka state Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy called on the Indian Air Force for help. [9] One proceeded towards Karadikal hill ranges while the other fought fires in the general area of Chammana halla top.
Bolagudda and Kanive temple area were also subject to helicopter fire control [10] A total of 10 sorties were flown, dropping approximately 30,000 litres of water. [8]
Satellite images shown the extent of the damage caused by the wildfire. The National Remote Sensing Centre of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Hyderabad, released a report based on Sentinel-2 satellite data, which reported that 15,443.27 acres of forest area damaged by the fire between 23 February 2019 and 25 February 2019 in Bandipur forest region alone. Nature Conservation Foundation's Wildlife Scientist Mysore Doreswamy Madhusudan estimated that 17,000 acres would have been affected since the National Remote Sensing Centre excluded the damage in administratively part of Bandipur (Revenue land). [11]
The number of casualties due to fire has not estimated yet. Wildlife officials say that small animals, reptiles, which are slow-moving, would have borne the brunt, while bigger mammals like leopards and tigers would have fled to the Bandipur Tiger Reserve and taken refuge in nearby areas. [11]
Karnataka's top forest official confirmed that an "act of sabotage" had caused the blaze. [12] Forest officials have arrested two shepherds for allegedly setting fire to the forest. Fearing tiger attacks on their cattle in Bandipur, on 22 February 2019 they had sparked the fire to chase away a tiger which was spotted in the area for a month or so, leading to massive fire, which destroyed thousands of acres of Bandipur forest area. The accused were booked under Indian section 27, 29, 30, 31, 40 , 50 and 51 of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. [13] [14]
Ooty, abbreviated as Udhagai) is a town and municipality in the Nilgiris district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, 86 km (53 mi) north west of Coimbatore, and the headquarters of the Nilgiris district. In the Nilgiri hills, it is known as the "Queen of Hill Stations" and is a popular tourist destination.
Bandipur National Park is a national park covering 868.63 km2 (335.38 sq mi) in Chamarajnagar district in the Indian state of Karnataka. It was established as a tiger reserve under Project Tiger in 1973. It is part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve since 1986.
The South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests is an ecoregion in the Western Ghats of southern India with tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests. This biome covers the Nilgiri Hills between elevation of 250 and 1,000 m in Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu states.
The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve is a biosphere reserve in the Nilgiri Mountains of the Western Ghats in South India. It is the largest protected forest area in India, spreading across Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. It includes the protected areas Mudumalai National Park, Mukurthi National Park, Sathyamangalam Wildlife Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu; Nagarhole National Park, Bandipur National Park, both in Karnataka; Silent Valley National Park, Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary, Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, and Karimpuzha Wildlife Sanctuary in Kerala.
Mudumalai National Park is a national park in the Nilgiri Mountains in Tamil Nadu in southern India. It covers 321 km2 (124 sq mi) at an elevation range of 850–1,250 m (2,790–4,100 ft) in the Nilgiri District and shares boundaries with the states of Karnataka and Kerala. A part of this area has been protected since 1940. The national park has been part of Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve since 1986 and was declared a tiger reserve together with a buffer zone of 367.59 km2 (141.93 sq mi) in 2007. It receives an annual rainfall of about 1,420 mm (56 in) and harbours tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests with 498 plant species, at least 266 bird species, 18 carnivore and 10 herbivore species. It is drained by the Moyar River and several tributaries, which harbour 38 fish species.
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The state of Karnataka in South India has a rich diversity of flora and fauna. It has a recorded forest area of 38,720 km2 which constitutes 55 of the geographical area of the state. These forests support 25% of the elephant population and 20% of the tiger population of India. Many regions of Karnataka are still unexplored and new species of flora and fauna are still found. The mountains of the Western Ghats in the western region of Karnataka are a biodiversity hotspot. Two sub-clusters of the Western Ghats, Talacauvery and Kudremukh, are on a tentative list of sites that could be designated as World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. The Bandipur and Nagarahole national parks which fall outside these subclusters were included in the Nilgiri biosphere reserve in 1986, a UNESCO designation. In the Biligiriranga Hills the Eastern Ghats meet the Western Ghats. The state bird and state animal of Karnataka are Indian roller and the Indian elephant. The state tree and state flower are sandalwood and lotus. Karnataka is home to 524 tigers.
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