Dharamshala, May 20 -- The forest fire incidents in the Dharamshala forest circle have recorded a significant decline during the ongoing summer season this year, with only 12 incidents reported till May 19 compared to 70 incidents during the corresponding period in 2025-26. Forest department officials attributed the decline to intermittent rainfall across the state this season, as well as close coordination with local residents and the administration for prevention and mitigation of forest fire incidents. The Dharamshala forest circle comprises three forest divisions - Nurpur, Palampur and Dharamshala. According to data available on the Himachal Pradesh forest department's forest fire reporting portal, 88 forest fires have been reported across Himachal during the ongoing summer season till May 19. Among the state's 10 forest circles, the highest number of forest fire incidents - 30 - has been reported in the Mandi forest circle, followed by 26 in the Nahan circle and 12 in the Dharamshala forest circle. The summer fire season is counted from April till the onset of the monsoon in June. The state witnessed intermittent rainfall during April and May this year. In April, Himachal received 66.3 mm actual rainfall against a normal of 64 mm. It was the 47th highest rainfall recorded in the state since 1901. The light showers continued earlier this month as well and the state has received near normal rainfall in May so far. Chief conservator of forests (Dharamshala circle) Basu Kaushal said, "The weather conditions have played their role this year in keeping forest fire incidents low. We have been working actively on preventive measures involving locals living around forest areas and raising awareness among people." "We have also carried out mapping of fire-sensitive beats and improved fire detection mechanisms. Besides our field staff, including van mitras, the forest department also engages fire watchers during the fire season. Our frontline field staff work without any breaks for prevention and mitigation of such incidents," she added. During the summer season last year (2025-26), the state had recorded 276 forest fire incidents, including 92 in the Dharamshala forest circle, followed by 64 in the Mandi circle and 28 in the Hamirpur circle. During the 2024-25 summer season, 2,433 forest fire incidents were reported in Himachal, out of which 540 incidents were reported in Dharamshala forest circle alone, while 353 incidents were reported in Mandi forest circle. Prior to that, only 110 forest fire incidents were reported during the summer season of 2023-24. Forest department officials said that an analysis of forest fire data indicates a pattern in which the number of incidents tends to rise after every two years. "The increase in forest fire incidents causes loss of biodiversity and apparently also leads to a rise in human-animal conflict due to habitat loss," a forest department official said....