Nainital forest fire: Helicopters, Army pressed into operation; boating halted | Top updates

Raging forest fires in Nainital district. (Representational)

The forest department in Nainital has called the Indian Air Force and the Indian Army to help control the forest fire that has been raging for over 36 hours and burnt several hectares of green cover. The district administration has pressed helicopters in the fire-fighting operations.

Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has said he will conduct a meeting over the Nainital forest fire in the state’s Haldwani district.

Here are the top 10 updates on the Nainital forest fire:

1. Puskar Singh Dhami said Nainital is facing a big fire. “The forest fires are a challenge for us. This is a big fire. We are working for all the essential needs. We have asked for help from the Army,” he said.
2. Pushkar Singh Dhami said they have taken measures to control the fire. “I am going to conduct a meeting in Haldwani today. We have conducted a meeting in Dehradun also regarding this. We will try to control the fire as soon as possible,” he added.
3. The forest fire is threatening the High Court Colony in Nainital. Dhami has asked the departments to douse the fire after coordinating among themselves.
4. The forest broke out in the forest area near Nainital. It has spread near the colony, which is situated near the Pines area. It also affected traffic movement.
5. Anil Joshi, a resident of the area and assistant registrar of the High Court told PTI: “The fire has engulfed an old and vacant house located near The Pines. It has not caused any damage to the High Court Colony but it has reached dangerously close to the buildings.”
6. The fire is reaching dangerously close to the Indian Army’s installation near the Pines area.
7. The Nainital administration has barred people from boating activities in Naini Lake because of the forest fire.
8. Nainital’s forest department has pressed 40 personnel in the fire-fighting operations.
9. Yesterday, within a 24-hour period, 26 incidents of forest were reported in the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand. Five incidents were reported in Garhwal. A total of 33.34 hectares of forest area was affected during the period.
10. From November 1 last year till now, a total of 575 incidents of forest fire have been reported in the state, affecting 689.89 hectares of forest area and costing the state more than ₹14 lakh, reported PTI.

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