IAF chopper sprinkles water to douse Uttarakhand​ forest fires; Rajnath Singh reviews situation

Dehradun: Uttarakhand fires have destroyed nearly 1900 hectares of forest land in 13 districts since February. At least six have died so far. Now, to douse the fire, IAF's chopper MI-17 will drop water in affected areas. Here are all the updates.

- IAF in action over Uttarakhand helping local authorities in controlling forest fires

- Pre-fire alert to be given till June 30th in 16 states including Uttarakhand: SS Negi 

- Air Force and Army on alert. 1800 hectares of area affected, 11-1200 fire cases: SS Negi,DG (Forests) and Special Secy, MoEF 

- Some notorious elements involved have been caught in Pauri and other districts setting forest afire, have been handed over to police: SS Negi

- I held a meeting with DG of forest survey of India, have given pre-fire alert to Uttarakhand for assistance: SS Negi

- Within one to two days, the situation will be under control: SS Negi, DG (Forests) and Special Secretary, MoEF 

- We have taken complete precautions. NDRF teams working there. A home ministry team is also to arrive there: SS Negi 

- Home Minister Rajnath Singh instructs MHA officials to monitor situation and provide all assistance in controlling fire

- HM Rajnath Singh reviewed fire situation with Chief Secretary of the state and the concerned officers in MHA this morning

- Due to refuelling of IAF's Mi-17 v5, operation for areas affected by Uttarakhand forest fire will be conducted from Haldwani army camp

- Carried out an air sortie this morn, visibility is low so we landed back, says Sushil Yadav (Pilot, IAF)

- The chopper and crew is ready, we are just waiting for weather to clear up, then we'll start fire fighting operations: Sushil Yadav 

- These (IAF's MI-17) choppers will lift water from lake and will use it to douse flames in affected areas, says Raza Abbas (SDM, Srinagar)

- IAF's 11-member team begins fire fighting operations to douse Uttarakhand forest fire (Srinagar, Garhwal)

- IAF's chopper MI-17 takes off from Nainital, will drop water in areas affected by Uttarakhand forest fire (see pic below)

- The Prime Minister`s Office (PMO) on Saturday sought information on fires in forests in Uttarakhand from the state government and assured all possible relief.

- Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday spoke to Uttarakhand Governor K.K Paul over the issue of fires in forests on the state, and assured that Centre is providing all necessary assistance to control the fire.

"Spoke to Uttarakhand Governor Shri KK Paul regarding the incidents of forest fires in the state. NDRF teams have already been sent," Singh said in a tweet.

"The Centre is providing all necessary assistance to Uttarakhand state to control the forest fires and help in containing the damage," he added.

- The National Disaster Response Force deployed three teams earlier on Saturday to control forest fires in Uttarakhand that have destroyed nearly 1900 hectares of forest land in 13 districts since February.

- The NDRF teams are equipped with water tankers, floating pumps and medical setup to assist the rescue operation. 

- The teams will be posted at Almora, Pauri and Gauchar in Chamoli districts.Locals have been told to report a fire incident to the concerned district magistrate as soon as they spot it.

- Pre-fire alerts listing possible fire points over the next seven days in forest areas are being made available on the forest department website.

- Besides ravaging forests, the fire has killed four people, including two women, in Uttarkashi and a woman and her child in Nainital district. 

- Two others were reportedly burnt in separate incidents in Nainital and Chamoli districts.Authorities had to close National Highway 58 that connects Badrinath for hours on Thursday after the forest fire could not be controlled.

- Paul has asked officials to scale up operations to control the fire.He has ordered deployment of additional staff and allocation of Rs. 5 crore to meet out the immediate financial needs required to control the fires.

- Deposed chief minister Harish Rawat has written to Paul urging him to declare Uttarakhand a `forest fire-ravaged` state.