IAF chopper resumes dousing forest fires on day 2 in Uttarakhand's Pauri Garhwal

Thick smoke from intense forest fires engulfed Srinagar town in Pauri Garhwal earlier in the day, causing a delay in the resumption of the aerial firefighting operation by the IAF helicopter.

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The Mi-17 helicopter, which was scheduled to start water spraying operation in the morning, remained grounded till afternoon, when it restarted after the visibility improved.

On the first day of its operation on Monday, the IAF chopper carried out two sorties to douse forest fires near Dobh Srikot village by collecting over 4,500 litres of water from Alaknanda River in Srinagar.

Garhwal divisional forest officer (DFO) Swapnil Anirudh said, "The IAF chopper resumed its operation to douse the forest fires near Adwani and nearby areas in the afternoon on the second day. The thick smoke in the morning didn't allow the chopper to begin its operation. It carried out five sorties. We will continue the operation to douse the forest fires using the chopper."

"In response to the raging forest fires at Pauri Garhwal sector in Uttarakhand, IAF provided much-needed relief by undertaking Bambi Bucket ops by its Mi17 V5 helicopters. Over 4,500 litres of water was used to douse the fires in close coordination with the Uttarakhand government. The swift action by #IAF enabled the fire fighting crew on the ground to penetrate and douse fires in a more efficient manner," the IAF said on X on Tuesday morning.

Meanwhile, the Congress party attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government saying chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami was busy in election campaigns outside the state even as fire raged in the forests of the state, gutting hundreds of hectares of forest land

Suryakant Dhasmana, state Congress vice president, said, "The situation of forest fires continues to deteriorate in the state with each passing day, but CM Dhami is busy in the election campaign for his party outside the state. It seems there is no disaster management department in the state. When the government is failing to execute its duties in such an emergency situation, I urge the governor to intervene and pass instructions to the government for required action."

"The economic lifeline Char Dham yatra is scheduled to begin on May 10 and tourist season has already kicked off, but there is no district where forests are not burning in the state. It is not just causing an adverse impact to the atmosphere but could also have a negative impact on the Char Dham yatra," he said.

"The action which should have been taken in October last year is being taken now. The accountability of disaster management and forest officials should be fixed," Dhasmana added.

The BJP on the other hand said the Congress was doing politics on the issue despite its government taking all possible steps to prevent and control the forest fires.

Mahendra Bhatt, state BJP vice president and Rajya Sabha MP, said, "To prevent the forest fires, the Dhami government is working at a war footing. The Congress and other opposition parties shouldn't do politics over the natural disaster. It is a well-known fact that the BJP government has effectively handled the disasters in the previous years. The people of the state appreciate the BJP government for the courageous work."

CM Pushkar Singh Dhami, who arrived in Dehradun on Tuesday, will take a review meeting on the forest fires in the state.

Dhami while speaking to media persons said, "It is a big challenge for us. We have been working on all options...whether to take help from the Army, deploying other agencies...or strict action against those involved in setting fires in forest. Our aim is to control the fire."

"Postponing his previously scheduled programmes, CM Pushkar Singh Dhami is reaching Dehradun today. On Wednesday, he will review the efforts being made for effective prevention of forest fires in various areas of the state. The Chief Minister will also review the proper arrangements for drinking water in view of the summer season and the preparations being made for the upcoming monsoon season. The CM will also review the preparations for the Char Dham Yatra and various arrangements being made on the yatra routes. After the meeting, the CM will go to Rudraprayag and review the various arrangements being made at Shri Kedarnath Dham and on the walking routes as well as the preparations being made for traffic management," an official release stated.