Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary | 15 Jun 2024

Source: TOI

In the first incident of frontline forest workers losing their lives in a wildfire this year, four forest department personnel lost their lives in a firefighting operation in Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary in Almora.

• The Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary is located in the Kumaon Himalayas of Uttarakhand.
  • In 1988, the sanctuary was established to conserve the rich biodiversity of the region.
  • It boasts a remarkable variety of flora due to its diverse topography and altitudinal variation. The sanctuary is primarily covered with a dense forest of oak and pine.
  • The sanctuary has over 200 species of birds including Eurasian jay, koklass pheasant, monal pheasant, and Himalayan woodpecker.
• Binsar was the erstwhile summer capital of the Chand Dynasty rulers, who ruled Kumaon from the 7th to 18th century AD. 
• According to locals, Binsar was named after the Bineshwar Mahadev temple, a 16th-century temple dedicated to Lord Shiva.

Read more: Forest Fires