Two persons were arrested by officials from the Gudalur forest division, after they were caught red handed igniting a forest fire on Sunday.
Forest Department officials identified the accused as Sivakumar, 34, and Madhavan, 44, of Ambalapuzha in the Bitherkad Forest Range.
C. Manoharan, Forest Range Officer, Bitherkad Range, said that a team of anti-poaching watchers, who were patrolling the area, found the two men behaving suspiciously and followed them.
They found the two men igniting forest fire at two places and informed forest officials, who rushed to the spot and nabbed the two.
The officials said that the motive of the men was unclear. It is believed that the two men were in an inebriated condition.
“Owing to the quick efforts of our staff members, we were able to quickly douse the flames, and the fire spread to around only one hectare of reserve forest,” said Mr. Manoharan.
Based on the instructions of District Forest Officer, Gudalur Division, V. C. Rahul, the two men were charged under section of the Tamil Nadu Forest Act, and remanded to judicial custody.
Cage set up to trap sloth bear
Forest Department officials in Gudalur also set up a cage to capture a sloth bear that had injured a female tea estate worker in Devarshola a few days ago.
The officials said that it was unlikely that the animal was still in the area, but added that they placed the cage as a precautionary measure to trap the animal.
They said that if trapped, the animal would be released away from the plantation and into a patch of reserve forest.
