Nagpur, Jul 31 (PTI) About 44 villages from the buffer and territorial areas of Pench Tiger Reserve (PTR) participated in the ‘Fire Free Pench Programme’ aimed at combating forest fires through active community involvement.
Prabhu Nath Shukla, Deputy Director of Pench Tiger Reserve, Maharashtra, announced that Tuyapar village from Ramtek taluka in Nagpur district achieved the first position.
Shukla noted that the PTR has implemented the Fire Free Pench Programme since the 2022 fire season. A competition is organised among participating villages to recognise their efforts in preventing forest fires.
Villages wishing to participate must first express their willingness through a resolution. This year, 44 villages—comprising 39 in the buffer area and more than 50 in the adjoining territorial areas—engaged in the initiative.
To bolster forest fire prevention, voluntary patrolling squads were established in each village. These squads, comprising a total of 195 youths, conducted patrols 51 times over the four-month fire season, from February 15 to June 15. Their efforts significantly raised public awareness and supported the forest department during fire incidents, Shukla stated in a release.
“This programme has helped in more than 90 per cent reduction in the forest fire cases. This year, the total fire affected by fires was 24.5 hectares, which is less than 0.03 per cent of the total forest area of Pench,” he stated.
The slight increase in fire incidents was attributed to four out of the five incidents occurring in areas where three consecutive human deaths had been reported due to tiger attacks.
The top-performing villages will receive monetary rewards of Rs 51,000 for first place, Rs 31,000 for second place, and Rs 21,000 for third place. PTI CLS NSK
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