Vulnerability of Indian Central Himalayan Forests to Fire in a Warming Climate and a Participatory Preparedness Approach Based on Modern Tools

Wildfires have been considered as part of the natural cycle, but the globe is witnessing them more often outside the natural cycle. In recent years, incidences of wild fire/forest fire are increasing globally, and also in India. The Himalayan region is not an exception, where wide inter-annual fluctuations occur in fire events, and a few of them lead to disasters resulting in immediate and cascading social and economic impacts and thus to vulnerability and exposure of Himalayan forests to current climate variability. Mountainous topography and insufficient state resources are a bottleneck to respond to fire disasters. This study analyses the role of climate as a precursor to large-scale forest fires, and the perception of village forest councils on the impact of forest fire and climate change. A framework has been proposed for integration of ground-based observation network and prevailing modern technologies as a mechanism to develop a fire potential index to reduce disturbances and for resource optimization in case of disastrous fires.