The ‘Strengthening Forest Fire Management in India’ report, a combined effort of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) and the World Bank, highlights that recurrent forest fires are endangering biodiversity, impeding natural regeneration, and posing a threat to over 92 million Indians dependent on forests. The report aims to fortify knowledge on forest fires by assessing current management systems, pinpointing implementation gaps, and proposing improvements. Furthermore, it seeks to understand how forest fires are hindering India’s climate change objectives.
Forest Fires: Role and Risks
Fire is critical in maintaining forest health through nutrient recycling, supporting tree regeneration, eliminating invasive weeds and pathogens, and fostering specific wildlife habitats. As populations and forest resource demands soar, the fire cycle has gone awry, necessitating better prevention and management of unwanted forest fires.
Forest fires, which have become a global concern, are burning larger areas and lengthening fire seasons due to global warming. Forest fires globally release billions of tons of CO2. Exposure to smoke from forest fires reportedly causes hundreds of thousands of deaths annually. For India, tackling forest fires is crucial to achieving its ambitious sustainability goals for its forests.
India’s Sustainability Goals
Under the National Mission for Green India, part of the National Action Plan on Climate Change, India aims to increase forest and tree cover. Furthermore, India has pledged to bring 33% of its geographic area under forest cover and create additional CO2 sinks by 2030 in its Nationally Determined Contribution. Therefore, preventing and managing forest fires is integral to accomplishing these targets.
Key Findings
The report reveals that forest fires affect at least 60% of Indian districts annually, with Northeast states registering the highest number of fire incidents. However, the Central region experiences the most extensive fire damage.
Natural and social factors shape fire potential and behavior. India’s monsoon largely determines forest fires’ seasonal nature. People cause almost all forest fires, often using fire to gather forest resources like livestock fodder. Changing societal and cultural practices also contribute, as with traditional shifting cultivation (jhum).
National Policy and Funding Gaps
The report identifies a policy vacuum at the national level for Forest Fire Prevention and Management (FFPM). MoEFCC’s 2000 national FFPM guidelines are no longer implemented. There is also a consistent lack of dedicated FFPM funding at both the central and state levels.
Forest Fire Detection Systems in India
Madhya Pradesh was the first state to develop an SMS-based system leveraging satellite data to alert field staff of active fires. The nationwide system rolled out by the Forest Survey of India (FSI) has helped fill the void left by inadequate ground detection resources. However, these satellite systems could benefit from more integration, including better data sharing between states and FSI.
Post-Fire Management Gaps
The absence of standard protocols for collecting post-fire data impedes compiling data across states, resulting in inadequate FFPM information. This lack of post-fire data has significant implications for creating informed FFPM plans and policies.
Policy Recommendations
The report calls for a national policy to consolidate existing guidelines and issue comprehensive FFPM directives aligned with climate change policies. It also suggests the clear delineation of roles and responsibilities among the MoEFCC, state forest departments, and disaster agencies, and the establishment of regular FFPM funding to the states.
Proposals for Staffing, Capacity and Management Improvements
Inadequate resources and insufficient ground staff hinder effective prevention, detection, suppression, and post-fire practices. Therefore, training should be extended to field officers, seasonal firewatchers, and community volunteers involved in firefighting.
Inter-Agency Coordination
Greater collaboration between State Forest Departments (SFDs), disaster management authorities, and research entities can help states innovate new science-based management approaches for preventing fires and rehabilitating fire-affected areas.
Technology Upgrades
FSI has initiated the development of early warning systems and fire danger rating. Digitizing management boundary data can enable FSI to accurately determine and report fires.
Community Engagement Initiative
The report suggests sensitizing communities to ensure responsible fire use that promotes forest health while minimizing damaging and uncontrolled fires. Training should also extend to community institutions managing most of the forest estate in regions like the Northeast.
