A forest fire which started on 2nd june on the Pakistan side of the Line of Control, separating Indian and Pakistan, in Mendhar area of district Poonch has spread to this side of the border and is threatening to engulf every thing which comes in its way. In fact the extreme heat has lead to the detonation of mines planted on the border leading to death of several wild animals and hampering the rescue work as well.
District Poonch in Jammu and Kashmir shares its borders with Pakistan and has been at the receiving end of Pak-sponsored militancy for several years. With increasing temperature and no rains for the past few days, the wildfire has engulfed a huge area on the Indian side of the line of control covering Hikka Gali, Sagra Gali, Topa Jungle, Sona Gali, Balnoi and Chajla Jungle. So intense is the heat generated by the fire that forest officials have not been able to access the area. Moreover, the area being on the tip of the line of control it is not possible to use helicopters for controlling the forest fire.
Divisional forest officer, Brij Mohan Sharma said that the wild fire on the Pakistan side has spread into this side and compartment numbers 140, 301, 131, 130, 205 and 206 are worst affected. A number of wild animals inhabiting this forest have become the victim of this fire as several carcasses have been spotted by some local residents in the area.
Range officer, Sayed Tajjamul Qazmi, told that the rescue work has been further hampered by the presence of mines in the area as it lies close to the line of control.
Sources said that this fire could also be the handiwork of some terrorist outfits as they might have wanted to divert the attention of the security forces in the area. There has been a lot of pressure off late on the militants to infiltrate into this area, said a security official on the condition of anonymity, admitting that a close watch is being kept on the movement as well as the communications of the terrorists.
Locals in Mendhar straining under the intense heat caused by the fire as well as the recent dry spell for the past few days, criticized the Pak authorities for not checking the fire in its infancy. A local resident said that in the worst affected areas a large number of wild animals and even some rare species have been killed.
Another victim of this forest fire, sources reveal is likely to be the border fence on the Line of Control, which has been set up with great difficulty. It was stated that the extreme heat generated by the fire could damage the pillars and even melt the iron wires leading to a hole in the border fence.
The local residents exhorted the authorities to use helicopters for controlling the wildfire as it could lead to heavy loss of forest land and wild life.