Chamarajanagar: Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy was met by grim scenes of the ravages caused by a man-made forest fire as he took a 45-minute chopper ride over the Bandipur National Park to assess the situation here on Wednesday.
Mr Kumaraswamy, who took a chopper to Bandipur with minister for tourism, Sa Ra Mahesh, from the HAL airport in Bengaluru, did an aerial survey of the Karadikallu and Gopalaswamy Betta ranges of the national park, which suffered the most damage in the forest fire that was finally contained Monday evening after a four day battle.
Those accompanying Mr Kumaraswamy said he was visibly upset at seeing the ravaged forests. Even from the ground, Bandipur offers a forlorn picture with its grass and lantana completely destroyed in the fire that spread from the Kundakere range to Gopalaswamy Betta range and later to parts of Bandipur and Moolehole ranges touching Kerala. Forest officials have,however, not yet come across any charred remains of wild animals killed in the fire.
Bandipur's 13 ranges are spread across both Mysuru and Chamarajnagar districts.
The national park shares borders with the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve of Tamil Nadu and the Wyanad Sanctuary in Kerala, portions of which were also affected by the fire.
Besides forest staff and volunteers, Bambit Bucket choppers of the Indian Air Force (IAF) were involved in battling the fire, which appeared to have been deliberately started by nearby villagers using incense sticks and ropes.
Mr Kumarswamy, who covered all the Bandipur ranges in his chopper, later left for Mandya to attend a public function, according to sources.
