One of the plantations destroyed in a fire at Bhati Village.
SANGUEM
After a series of fire incidents at different locations in Sanguem over the past four days, yet another fire broke out on Tuesday on a hill where the government's ambitious plan to set up IIT had failed.
The fire could be noticed from quite a distance from the main road at Sanguem and locals alleged the fire to have been started by some miscreants.
The hill does not have any private plantation on the top, but there are plantations at the foot of the hill undertaken by the locals who opposed the setting up of the IIT project.
A villager, Milton Fernandes, said the place where the fire has taken broken out is inaccessible by vehicles and it would be difficult for authorities to douse the fire.
“If the fire continues overnight, there are possibilities of extensive damage to the flora and fauna. Forest trees which existed on the hill for decades will be damaged. Authorities must trace the cause of the fire,” said Fernandes.
Incidentally, the fire at Sanguem took place barely a day after Forest Minister Vishwajit Rane had claimed that the fire on the Satre hill within Mhadei Wild Life Sanctuary had been contained.
In the past four days, there have been four fire mishaps which have destroyed plantations in Bhati village which are owned by Sagun Gaonkar, Krishna Velip, Anand Bhatikar and Chanda Gaonkar.
Elsewhere, a fire engulfed garage near EDC office in Panaji on Tuesday. Fire fighters managed to douse the fire after much efforts.
