Air Force Chopper Joins Effort To Douse Forest Fires In Uttarakhand

An Indian Air Force helicopter was pressed into service to extinguish the raging forest fires in villages of Srikot in Pauri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand on Monday.

An M-17 helicopter was deployed to assist in the firefighting operations.

State's Chief Secretary, Radha Raturi, announced today a series of measures aimed at controlling the spread of the flames and mitigating further damage.

Ms Raturi said that the Air Force has been called in to aid firefighting efforts, and plans are underway to implement a pilot cloud seeding project to induce rainfall in the affected regions.

"The Chief Minister held a meeting the day before. For compliance with those directions, the Forest Department has been informed. The Forest Department has given responsibility for each district to its senior officials. Pauri Garhwal is facing the worst. For that, DM Pauri has also spoken with the Air Force. IAF choppers are now carrying water from Srinagar and sprinkling it on the affected area," Ms Raturi said told news agency ANI.

To prevent further incidents, the state government has banned the burning of agricultural residues and waste in urban areas. This ban comes in response to widespread stubble burning after wheat harvesting, which has been linked to the increased risk of forest fires.

While appealing to Uttarakhand residents for their cooperation, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said, "Forest wealth is our heritage which we have to protect at all costs."

Since November last year, there have been 910 incidents of forest fire in the state, due to which about 1145 hectares of forest have been affected.