PANAJI
Two military helicopters continued flying sorties and dropping tonnes of water over regions of the Goa's forests affected by raging wildfires since Sunday morning even as forest officials reported yet another spot where a fresh fire broke out in Valpoi.
As of Sunday evening, the Forest Department said a total of eight fires were active and nearly 450-plus volunteers were deployed in the continuing joint fire-fighting operation.
Forest Minister Vishwajit Rane, meanwhile, continued to post updates on the forest fires and claimed there was only one new fire recorded on Sunday since morning at Okambi Piliem in a government forest area.
"Hearing that there has only been one new fire recorded since morning is a relief. I am grateful to our forest team, the Indian Air Force, the Navy, and our locals who have fought this fire valiantly for days," Rane said in a tweet on Sunday evening.
In yet another tweet, the forest minister said, eight active fires were still raging -- two at Surla (Mollem government forests), one in the Cumari area of Netravali Wildlife Sanctuary and another at Potrem in a government forest in Netravali.
Four other fires in government forests are raging at Kopardem-Valpoi, Shigao, Curdi-Colomba and the new one at Okambi-Piliem, Rane added.
Meanwhile, the Forest Department has reached out to the Goa police asking it to assist by deploying more personnel so as to deter miscreants from igniting fires in the forests.
The Department has formally written to police officials in both North as well as South Goa districts making the request to enhance deployment in forest areas of their respective jurisdictions.
Over the last week since March 5, Goa has witnessed unprecedented wildfires raging in its ecologically sensitive Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary, Netravali Wildlife Sanctuary and other reserve forest areas.
Despite a massive joint fire-fighting exercise by the Forest department and the Directorate of Fire and Emergency Services, the fires continue to rage.
While the huge workforce on the ground including locals and volunteers besides forest personnel and the aerial firefighting by military aircraft managed to douse some, the fires kept flaring up in newer areas.
In all, 14 fires had been doused across the ghats at Anmod, Satre, Kalay and the hillock in Salcete's Dramapur-Sarzora area.
In addition to fighting the active fires, the forest officials have also begun distributing awareness material in the form of 'dos and don'ts' across Goa's hinterland region in a bid to prevent fresh fires. The district administration (Collectorate) in both the districts are also engaged in issuing regular advisories.
