Over 2,000 Fires Reported, Many Were Deliberate, Says State Forest Department

As many as 2,420 fires spread through 24,000 hectares of the state’s forest area in 2012-13, resulting in an estimated loss of Rs 19 lakh, the latest statistics available with the state forest department showed. In the previous year, they consumed 72,247 hectares. On an average over 42,000 hectares caught fire annually between 2005 and 2013, and the burning, in many cases, was intentional, officials said.