Bhubaneswar: The Union Ministry for Environment, Forest and Climate Change formed a three-member expert team Wednesday to help the Odisha government to control and prevent forest fires in the state.
Union Environment and Forest Minister Prakash Javadekar informed that the team will go to Odisha soon and will provide expert technical advice and handholding towards early and effective dousing of forest fires.
The expert team consists of Dr Amit Mallick, IGF, National Tiger Conservation Authority, New Delhi, Subratt Mahapatra, DDG, MoEF & CC Regional Office, Bhubaneswar and Arti C h a u d h a r y, H e a d , Silviculture – ICFRE (as fire expert).
According to the ministry, the panel will do the assessment of the status of fire incidents in Odisha, Similipal Tiger Reserve/Biosphere Reserve in particular.
Further, it will give expert and technical advice to the state government for containment in control of fire in forests and will examine the status of loss of forest and wildlife and its relationship with poaching, if any.
“The team would be working till the state attains a normal situation with respect to fire incidents,” the ministry informed. Earlier in the day a BJP delegation from Odisha led by Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan had met Javadekar and sought his help in containing forest fires in Odisha.
PNN
