Trees, wildlife charred in northern Panna forest fire

TNN May 4, 2013
BHOPAL: A fire that broke out in a forest in northern region of Panna district, about 15km from the tiger reserve, on Thursday is threatening the forest cover and wildlife. Plantations in around 35 hectares of forest near Saharia area have reportedly been gutted in the fire that is spreading towards Amanganj area, said forest officials on Friday.

Making matters worse, the fire alert and messaging system (FAMS) developed by the IT wing of the forest department didn't function, sources said. FAMS uses processed remote sensing data of active fire locations and sends instant alerts to concerned field staff through the SMS and e-mail.

More than 80 forest employees and officials have been pressed into service in the area to control the fire, said SK Gupta, DFO North.

A probe has been ordered by the state forest ministry as there are allegations that the it was the handiwork of miscreants to cover up illegal felling of trees over the last few months.

NGOs blame forest officials for the fire terming it as a planned 'incident' to hush up illegal felling and show expenditures of budget allotted for fire protection. "I have moved a PIL seeking investigation on rampant illegal felling of teak woods from the northern range of Panna recently. The fire broke out in the same area. It's intentionally done to destroy the evidences," alleges Shrikant Dixit, who runs an NGO in Panna.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/Trees-wildlife-charred-in-northern-Panna-forest-fire/articleshow/19876054.cms

Forest Rights Act a bane or boon?

S. HARPAL SINGH, The Hindu | April 27, 2013

An estimated two lakh hectares of reserve forests illegally denuded between 2008 and 2011

• FRA intended to provide relief to tribal people by recognising their rights on lands tilled by them
• ‘57,000 individual and community claims received for recognition of rights over two lakh hectares’

Disappearing forests:A stretch of agriculture fields which
were once part of the dense Mangi forests in Sirpur (U)
mandal of Adilabad district.
-  PHOTO: S. HARPAL SINGH

With hardly any greenery to camouflage the loss, the dry summer months have exposed a massive scale of destruction of forests in the backward tribal district of Adilabad in Andhra Pradesh. The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, (FRA) has emerged as a major factor having generated, paradoxically, decimation of forests on an unprecedented scale.

While the Union government intended to provide relief to tribal people by way of recognising rights on lands being tilled by them in the reserve forests through the FRA, a wrong message got percolated to grass roots level. In the absence of proper awareness on its provisions, people began clearing new wooded areas to convert them into agriculture fields with the hope that the government will eventually ‘regularise’ them.

It has confirmed the fears of conservationists and pristine forests began dwindling at an alarming rate reducing the 43 per cent forest cover in Adilabad to below 20 per cent of its 16,000 sq km of area.

Trees in an estimated two lakh hectares of reserve forest were illegally felled between 2008 and 2011 putting Adilabad among the districts where worst kind of tree felling has taken place.

That the scale of deforestation is mind-boggling and can be seen from the numerous roads that criss-cross the terrain. For example, clearings as deep as 500 metres which can be seen on either side of the 35-km long Nirmal bypass of the NH 7, provide an inkling into the severity of the problem.

“We were simply unable to stop the large scale decimation of forests just because we were outnumbered by raiding villagers. In hindsight, I think the FRA ought to have been delayed until an implementation mechanism was put in place,” observes a Forest officer who recalls his stint here when the FRA got implemented.

As many as 57,000 individual and community claims for recognition of rights were received covering an extent of over two lakh hectares of land being tilled or in use of tribal farmers at that point of time.

“We continue to receive fresh claims but, we are not entertaining those in the absence of guidelines for second phase implementation of the FRA,” says the Project Officer of Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA), Utnoor, the agency which settles the claims.

Source: http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/forest-rights-act-a-bane-or-boon/article4659253.ece

Forest cover depletes in Krishna district

G.V.R. SUBBA RAO

115.8 hectare of forest land has been cleared and encroached upon in the last two years

• The initiative to raise plantations in forest land also accounts for negative growth
• Attempts to encroach upon forest land traced in Sunkollu and Kantreipadu of Nuzvid range

Not for long:A view of the fast depleting Kondapalli
forest near Vijayawada.— Photo: Ch. Vijaya Bhaskar

The forest cover in Krishna district is depleting and a negative growth is being recorded, if the satellite images are to be believed. The negative growth has been recorded in two consecutive years of 2010 and 2011.

As much as 115.8 hectares of forest land has been cleared and encroached upon. The initiative to raise plantations in forest land has also accounted for negative growth in the district.

Satellite images point out that there is a decrease of 41.96 Ha of open forest and 4.30 Ha of scrub between 2009 (October-December) and 2010 (October-December).

The State government, in the forest report 2012, noted that a negative change (including scrub) of 27.66 Ha is on account of clearance of jungle growth for raising plantations. Encroachments accounted for 18.6 Ha.

The negative growth was recorded in previous year as well. Comparison of forest cover (satellite data of October 2009) with that assessment year (satellite imagery of October 2008-February 2009), shows a negative change of 150.28 Ha.

There is a decrease of 20 Ha of moderately dense forest, 126 Ha of open forest. Of the total negative change, raising plantations accounts for 53.08 Ha, and encroachments in 97.2 Ha.

A negative growth was recorded in Nuzvid range of Vijayawada division in the district, as 27.66 Ha was cleared for plantation. The Andhra Pradesh Forest Development Corporation is supposed to take up plantation there. Fresh attempts to encroach on forest land were traced in Sunkollu and Kantreipadu of Nuzvid range.

When contacted, Divisional Forest Officer P.J. Banerjee said that the vegetation growth depends on various factors including rainfall and sub-soil moisture.

The clearance of vegetation for raising plantations was a forest management intervention. So, it cannot be considered as loss of forest cover. There were few old encroachments, and fresh attempts were made. Cases were slapped against the encroachers, he said.

Source: http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-in-school/forest-cover-depletes-in-krishna-district/article4444521.ece

Forest officials concerned over bridge

S. HARPAL SINGH

Say the new bridge over Godavari river aiding teak smugglers in Adilabad district

A new high-level bridge across the Godavari river near Kalamadugu in Jannaram mandal has become a cause of alarm for forest officials of the Kawal Tiger Reserve (KTR). The bridge reduces considerably the distance to a few towns like Jagityal in neighbouring Karimnagar district which is likely to become an attractive proposition for timber smugglers operating in Adilabad district.

“The bridge can actually bring our efforts at controlling teak smuggling to a nought. We are in the process of establishing a check-post at the new entry point to Karimnagar district”, says Jannaram Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) G. Rama Krishna Rao revealing the apprehension of his department.

While illegal felling of teak is under check within the confines of the KTR, smugglers are having a field day elsewhere in the district.

A whopping Rs. 13 to Rs. 14 crore worth teak seized in continuing operations, was auctioned at the Ichoda and Khanapur timber depots since April last year. “About 3,000 cubic metres of illegally felled teak was seized from the forests of Ichoda, Nirmal and Khanapur.

The situation is more than alarming considering the fact that this seizure is taken to be just 10 per cent of all teak felled in smuggling activity in this area”, reveals a top forest official as he tries to throw light on intensity of smuggling activity.

Teak transport

Teak from the interior parts of Ichoda and Khanapur is transported to Nizamabad and Karimnagar through several routes mainly over different bridges on Godavari. The Forest Department already has check-posts at Soan in Nirmal, Badankurti in Khanapur and Gudem in Dandepalli mandal.

“Smugglers even from distant Ichoda can cross over into Karimnagar through the Kalamadugu bridge. They can transport teak to this place through interior parts of Ichoda mandal via Pembi”, the forest official points out the inherent attraction for timber smugglers.

Source: http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/forest-officials-concerned-over-bridge/article4405749.ece

Uppalapadu tank works get forest clearance

P. SAMUEL JONATHAN

CC road will be laid from main road to bird sanctuary

Avian paradise: Pelicans soaring at the Uppalapadu bird
sanctuary in Guntur district.— Photo: T. Vijaya Kumar

The Forest Department has given the nod for undertaking developmental works at Uppalapadu tank, the famed breeding place for migratory birds. District Forest Officer S.K Salaam told The Hindu that the Forest Department has given financial clearance to undertake works at a cost of Rs 17.28 lakh.

The works including laying of a CC road from the main road to the bird sanctuary, afforestation, strengthening of tank bund, removal of water hyacinth and appointment of watch and ward staff at the sanctuary.

The Eco Development Committee, which is yet to be constituted, would be undertaking the works.

The works would start once the department gets funding.

The action plan was part of a major scheme for development of the sanctuary at a cost of Rs.2 crore, with which the Department has plans to take up construction works, setting up of cafeteria and establishing an eco-tourism centre.

The nondescript village would soon get a face lift.

Water contamination

The district administration has already pledged to lay a pipe line at a cost of Rs.35 lakh and part of the funds would be drawn from MPLADS. For years, villagers have been voicing their concerns over the contamination of water in the village tank due to the presence of a large number of migratory birds. Signs of a conflict between human beings and the birds endangering peaceful co-existence had appeared recently when villagers began felling giant trees abutting the water tanks that provided refuge to birds.

Source: http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/uppalapadu-tank-works-get-forest-clearance/article4311586.ece