A fire atop Kottamalai was put out after a struggle of nearly three hours, by personnel of the Forest Department, Vellore range, with the help of villagers of Melchenganatham.
Officers of the department said that received information about the fire at 7.30 pm on Thursday, rushed to the spot and contained the fire with the help of the villagers by 10.30 pm. The source of the fire has not been ascertained yet.
“This area falls under the Kottamalai Reserve Forest. ‘Manjam pul’ (lemon grass) grows in plenty in these areas and has dried up now So, even if a passer-by drops a cigarette accidentally, the lemon grass will catch fire immediately. . It will spread very fast due to breezy conditions,” an officer said.
He said that awareness was being created among residents to be cautious in not starting off a fire in such areas.
Such man-made fires are reported every year. There have been instances of miscreants setting fire to mature lemon grass found on the hills. Such acts are committed mostly by persons grazing goats and cattle as the mature lemon grass cannot be eaten by the animals. There will be no new growth of grass if the dried-up grass is left behind.
