Bamboo bushes caught in fire

Hanumakonda: Bamboo bushes in the Kakatiya Vana Vihar, an urban lung space, at Elkathurthy village in Hanumakonda district caught fire on Monday. According to forest officials, the friction between the bamboo groves might have ignited fire. The dried up leaves and weed led to the spread of fire. The bamboo and eucalyptus were planted some two decades ago.

It's learnt that the forest officials tried to douse the fire by sprinkling water brought by the water tankers. When they failed to control the fire, they summoned the fire fighters. The fire fighters brought the flames under control. Of the total 5.5 hectare, nearly one hectare of the bamboo bushes was caught in fire. FRO B Mayuri said that barring bamboo groves there was no damage to other parts of the park.

It may be mentioned here that the Forest Department developed the park in the sprawling 90 acres abutting NH-563 (Warangal-Karimnagar road), 20 kms from Hanumakonda district headquarters, with an outlay of Rs more than Rs 1.50 crore. It was inaugurated on January 12, 2022. The park has walking track, play area for children, open gym, toilets and seating arrangements under Pagoda like structures.