Belpahar: The Belpahar Forest Range (Jharsuguda Division) held a one-day ‘Forest Fire Awareness’ cricket tournament at Ratan Tata stadium on Sunday. Led by Range Officer Pradeep Nayak, the event saw participation from four teams.
In the final match, Vana Suraksha Samiti (VSS) XI secured the championship by defeating OFSDP XI. After losing the toss and being asked to bat first, VSS XI managed to score a commendable 73 runs for 5 wickets in 6 overs. In reply, OFSDP XI struggled to gain momentum, finishing as runners-up with a score of only 25 runs for 7 wickets.
The match was officiated by umpires Prajwal Patel and Ganesh Chandra Marai. Prahlad Nayak, District Wildlife Warden of Jharsuguda, inaugurated the tournament as the chief guest. During the closing ceremony, Jharsuguda DFO Manu Ashok Bhatt was present as the chief guest to distribute prizes, alongside Awadh Kishore Pandey, GM MCL Lakhanpur; Susanta Das, Vice-President of TRL Krosaki; and Surendra Kumar Bhoi, Principal of Belpahar Junior College.
On this occasion, Hamid Kumar Mahapatra and Narottam Pradhan were honored for their contributions to forest and environmental protection. The event was coordinated with the support of Belpahar forester Sunil Kumar Bhoi, forest staff, and members of the Odisha Forestry Sector Development Project (OFSDP).
