The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) issued an order on October 13, 2025, directing all state governments and Union Territories to implement revised Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for forest fire management. The revised SOPs were prepared by the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE), headquartered in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, and represent a comprehensive overhaul of India's operational framework for preventing, detecting, and responding to forest fires.
The revised SOPs cover five distinct forest types prevalent across India: (1) Tropical moist deciduous forests, (2) Tropical dry deciduous forests, (3) Sub-tropical pine forests, (4) Temperate and alpine forests, and (5) Dry and semi-arid scrub forests. Each forest type has unique fire ecology — dry deciduous forests in central India and Rajasthan are particularly vulnerable during the dry season (February–May), while pine forests in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand are prone to high-intensity crown fires.
The SOPs address the full fire management cycle: pre-fire prevention (firebreaks, community patrolling), early detection (fire watch towers, satellite monitoring via FIRMS/VIIRS), rapid response protocols, and post-fire regeneration. They also mandate coordination between the forest department, revenue department, and disaster management authorities at the district level.
For Rajasthan, the SOPs are particularly relevant to two ecosystems: the Aravalli hill ranges (featuring dry deciduous and scrub forests) and the thorn forests of the semi-arid zones. Rajasthan's forests cover approximately 9.6% of its geographic area, with significant forest cover in districts like Udaipur, Chittorgarh, Baran, Kota, and Sawai Madhopur. The Sariska and Ranthambore Tiger Reserves are especially vulnerable to anthropogenic fire.
India loses significant forest cover annually to fires — estimates range from 0.5 to 2 million hectares per year according to FSI (Forest Survey of India) data. Forest fires release stored carbon, degrade biodiversity, reduce water table recharge, and destroy wildlife habitats. The 2021 report by Down to Earth highlighted that Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, and Maharashtra account for the highest forest fire incidents, while Uttarakhand experiences the most intense (high-severity) fires.
The ICFRE SOPs align with global best practices from Australia's NFRS, Canada's CIFFC, and the EU's Copernicus EMS, integrating satellite-based early warning, community forest fire management (CFFM) units, and inter-departmental coordination protocols.