DEHRADUN: While the Uttarakhand Forest Department is operating on a war footing to prepare for the upcoming fire season, a startling discrepancy has emerged between satellite-based data and ground reality. Recent figures from the Forest Survey of India (FSI) suggested a burning crisis, but field verification revealed that only 6.75% of these alerts were actual forest fires.
Between November 2025 and January 2026—a period typically considered the "off-season" for fires—the state received 1,957 fire alerts. The high frequency of these warnings sparked concern within the government, as winter fires are usually rare due to higher moisture levels.
However, ground checks told a different story. Upon physical verification of all 1,957 locations, forest officials found only 132 sites were actually on fire.
The data indicates that the satellite systems often fail to distinguish between destructive forest fires and routine activities such as farmers burning crop residue or the department’s own “control burns” used to create fire lines.
This technological inaccuracy has taken a heavy toll on ground staff. Forest guards often trek for hours through rugged terrain to reach remote coordinates provided by the FSI, only to find no smoke or fire.
“Our teams are being stretched thin,” a senior official noted. “The manpower and resources wasted on chasing these ‘ghost fires’ could be better utilized for genuine conservation and prevention efforts.”
The 132 confirmed incidents resulted in the loss of 18.84 hectares of forest land. While any loss is significant, the scale is far lower than the nearly 2,000 alerts initially suggested.
Uttarakhand Forest Minister Subodh Uniyal expressed concerns over the reliability of the current monitoring system.
“I have consistently maintained that the alerts provided by the Forest Survey of India are not entirely accurate. Only 6 to 7 percent of these alerts are found to be genuine upon verification,” Minister Uniyal told this newspaper.
He emphasized the need for a more sophisticated filtering system. “Our foresters are forced to run unnecessarily through the jungles due to false alarms, wasting precious time and energy. We need a technological upgrade to ensure that we receive precise, real-time data that distinguishes between a kitchen fire, a farm fire, and a forest blaze,” he added.
As the official fire season (February 15 to June 15) approaches, the department is now refining its internal reporting to ensure that efforts are focused where they are actually needed.
Technical breakdown of the alerts:
Total Alerts: 1,957
Actual Forest Fires: 132 (approx. 6.75%)
False Alerts: 768
External Fires (Outside Forest Area): 756
Departmental Control Burns: 301