VALPOI
While various forest and fire teams have been working round the clock to control the forest fires in various parts of Sattari, help has also come in from across the State.
Following the support and assistance offered by local youth in combating the forest fires in their respective villages in Morlem, Derode and Koparde, youth from different parts of the State volunteered help to tackle the forest fire in Pendral an area in Nargargao which borders Goa and Karnataka.
The youth worked throughout the day and along with the forest and fire teams, managed to bring the fire under control, drawing widespread appreciation in the area.
Following an appeal from Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, Forest Minister Vishwajit Rane and Poriem MLA Deviya Rane, the local youth from Morlem joined hands with other teams to extinguish the forest fire.
A few days later, youth from Koparde also offered support and assistance to the teams to douse the forest fire at the forest in their village.
When a fire broke out at Zadani-Pendral, a remote area in Nagargao panchayat, a nature lover Pradeep Gawandalkar appealed for volunteers through social media.
Responding to Gawandalkar’s appeal, a large number of youth assembled at the KTC bus station on Valpoi on Sunday morning.
“While the forest department did a good job in bringing the fire under control, the fire was still alive in some places. The youth who arrived from different parts of the State assisted the forest and fire teams throughout the day in the extinguishing the fire and preventing it from spreading to other parts of Pendral,” said Gawandalkar.
“The Lord Mahadev temple has been erected at the site and a number of devotees visit the temple on Shivratratsav and seek darshan, while nature lovers and environmentalists regularly visit this area to explore the forest.”
Nakul Dhawaskar, a youth from Bicholim who was part of the firefighting operations, said everyone needed to support the forest department.
“If the biological wealth of Sattari taluka is to be preserved, the contribution of people is important. Hundreds of youths have been united and have cooperated to extinguish the fires,” said Gawas.
Gopinath Gawas, a headmaster at a school in Keri, said the responsibility to extinguish fire did not rest only on the forest department alone.
“The youth have realised the need to safeguard our forests and have begun joining hands with the forest department. And this is a very good sign. If youth get involved in other such activities, they will help safeguard the environment in their respective areas,” he said.
