Sri Lanka, March 1 -- Locals say that many valuable and rare plants have been cut down for construction in the Pathana area, a beautiful place in the Knuckles Range, a World Heritage Site.

Meanwhile, the National Disaster Management Center urges the public to pay attention to forest fires due to the prevailing dry weather.

The center said that wildfires, especially due to hunting, could spread rapidly with the dry weather.

A fire that broke out in a reserve in the Thawalamtenna area in Badulla - Atampitiya yesterday (28) afternoon has destroyed more than 20 acres of land.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Hiru News....