Bhopal: A relentless heatwave sweeping across India has triggered widespread forest fires in more than a dozen states, with Madhya Pradesh emerging as the worst-affected region, according to official data and satellite monitoring.
The fires, reported across at least 12 states—from Uttarakhand in the north to Gujarat in the west and Andhra Pradesh in the south—have scorched vast tracts of forest land amid soaring temperatures and dry conditions.
Data from the Forest Survey of India (FSI) shows that over 634 “large fire” incidents were recorded in Madhya Pradesh alone. Other severely affected states include Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh with around 465 such incidents each, while Andhra Pradesh reported more than 400 fires. In the northeast, Assam and Manipur also witnessed significant fire activity. Despite the scale of the disaster, no human casualties have been reported so far. However, officials warn of severe ecological damage, including loss of wildlife and destruction of natural habitats.
The FSI defines “large forest fires” as those spanning at least three contiguous satellite-detected pixels—roughly 40 hectares or more. Alarmingly, at least 10 fires have been burning continuously for over three days, with eight persisting for more than five days, indicating the intensity of the crisis.
Several ecologically sensitive and tourist regions have also been impacted. Fires have been reported near Valley of Flowers, Shimla, the Nilgiris, and the Seshachalam Forest. In Uttarakhand alone, at least 130 hectares of forest land have been affected, with flames also reported along stretches of the Char Dham pilgrimage route.
Experts say central and southern India are bearing the brunt of the fires, with regions in western Maharashtra, southern Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and central Odisha increasingly classified as highly fire-prone zones.
With heatwave conditions expected to persist, authorities warn that the risk of further outbreaks remains high, raising concerns over environmental damage and biodiversity loss.
