IAF helicopters begin firefighting operations in Uttarakhand
What's the story
IAF helicopters on Monday began firefighting operations in Uttarakhand, conducting several sorties over burning forests in Garhwal region to spray water over raging flames and extinguish them.
"An IAF helicopter with a bucket carrying 3,500 liters of water from Tehri lake was deployed to douse the forest fire in Gaja, Pokhri, and Quili," said Narendra Nagar DFO and the campaign's nodal officer DS Meena.
Details
The helicopter has made four sorties to extinguish the fires
"The helicopter has made four sorties so far to extinguish the fires in these forests located in the Narendra Nagar area of the district," he said.
"Similar sorties will also be conducted by the Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopter on Tuesday to pour water over the burning forests of the Thauldhar block of the district," Tehri DFO Koko Rose said.
Activities
Boating activities in Tehri lake were suspended during the day
Boating activities in the Tehri lake were kept suspended during the day so that the IAF helicopter can collect water from the lake in an uninterrupted way.
"Meanwhile, another IAF helicopter stationed in Kumaon for the purpose could not undertake sorties due to low visibility caused by a thick cover of smoke emanating from the smoldering forests," Kumaon DFO Tejaswini Patil Dhakate said.
Quote
Since January, 983 forest fire incidents reported in the state
"There are 40 active fire spots in the forests of Garhwal and Kumaon regions with Nainital, Almora, Tehri, and Pauri districts being the worst-hit," forest officials said. "Since January 2021, 983 forest fire incidents occurred in the state affecting 1,292 hectares of land," they said.