Daijiworld Media Network - Kundapur (SP)

Kundapur, May 12: On Monday May 11 too, the wild fire that was first seen at Ambikanu forest of Kosally in Yadtare village, Byndoor, continued to blaze. Already acres of rubber plantations and forest areas have been consumed by the leaping flames.

The fire brigade personnel who arrived on the spot on Sunday from Bhatkal, returned as they could not find a way to climb up the hillock, to the spot of the fire. The efforts made by local people to douse the fire went in vain. The people are angry that the forest department officials, who visited the spot, have not taken any initiative to control the fire that is spreading fast. As a result, the fire that was seen in the early stages only on a hillock here has spread to the forest region. It is also said, the cutting down of trees and plants by unscrupulous people in the name of encroachment at the foot of the hills, has helped the fire to spread. Valuable trees, medicinal herbs etc have been gutted down due to the fire so far.

Some people have also expressed the suspicion that people who want to encroach upon the forest land would have started the forest fire. The wind that is blowing through the region is helping the fire to spread to more areas. If the situation is not controlled, the people are afraid, hundreds of acres of the forest might turn into barren land unless the region receives heavy rainfall soon.