Forest dept on ‘red alert’ as fire concerns mount

With the meteorological department predicting an increase in the intensity of heat, the conservator of the forest office in Rawalpindi has extended the ‘forest fire’ season from July 15 to July 31 while ordering the department to stay on ‘red alert’ till that time.

With the issuance of the red alert, the leaves of all the employees of the forest department stand cancelled.

The conservator (or nazim-e-aala) for the Rawalpindi division ordered round-the-clock surveillance of the forests of Margalla Hills, Murree, Kotli Sattian, Ghora Gali, Panjar, Kallar Syedan and other areas.

The district forest officers of Murree and Rawalpindi have been instructed to patrol the forests daily.

District forest officers, sub-divisional forest officers, block officers, range forest officers have been directed to immediately set up temporary offices in these government forests to deal with any kind of situation.

The holidays of forest guards and foresters have also been canceled, and they have been in areas designated as forests or protected areas by the government.

In light of these instructions, field offices have been set up in all government forests.

There has been a complete ban on all types of cooking in areas designated as forests by the government till July 31. There is a danger of fire in dry leaves and bushes because of cooking.

Apart from this, the implementation of the ban on carrying cigarettes , matches, lighters, axes, knives and saws in all these government forests has also been tightened. Security personnel on motorcycles and equipped with walkie-talkies will man the forests, with personnel on horses to provide further cover. Close circuit cameras have also been installed at key entrances and exits of the forests.

To protect the forests from fire, the fire season and red alert will continue till July 31. The number of forest fires has increased in Pakistan, with its dense forests in the north really susceptive to it during the hard and dry summers until the arrival of monsoon.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 23^rd, 2023.