A major fire broke out at Bahour Lake, a transboundary wetland sharing borders with neighbouring Puducherry, at around 1 a.m. on Thursday, August 3, 2023. The lake is located in both Cuddalore in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, and is the second-largest freshwater lake in Puducherry.
Residents living in the vicinity of the lake in Vinayagapuram and Karaimedu near Cuddalore, reported huge clouds of smoke emitting from the waterbody. Officials of the Puducherry Forest Department alerted their counterparts in Tamil Nadu about the fire, and teams with fire tenders from both sides, from Cuddalore and Puducherry, are in the process of dousing the fire, as of mid-morning on Thursday.
The exact cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained. According to a senior Forest Department official, “The fire has been reported from three locations on the lake on the Tamil Nadu side. The extent of the fire is huge and the Puducherry Forest Department has been extending all help to Tamil Nadu. Our immediate focus is to control the fire. A preliminary investigation has revealed that the fire was man-made,” the official said.
The lake’s main feeder channels are located in Puducherry and the operation and maintenance of the lake, a biodiversity spot lies with the Public Works Department (PWD) in Puducherry.
According to V. Chandrasekhar, president of the Bangaru Vaickal Neeradhara Kootamaippu, a water users’ association, “This is not the first time that the lake has witnessed a fire accident. Fires caused by miscreants are a regular phenomenon. Despite a ban, illegal fishing and farming activities have been continuing in the lake and the authorities have failed to take action.”
T.P. Raghunath, director, Svarnim Puducherry, Sri Aurobindo Society, alleged that farmers could have set fire to the lake with the intention of expanding their illegal farming. “The lake is a biodiversity hotspot and farmers, by continuing to cultivate illegally in the lake have disturbed the habitat of the birds, especially peacocks, and other small mammals. A joint-level team led by the Collectors of Cuddalore and Puducherry should ensure that all encroachments on the lake are evicted without delay,” he said.
