Dehradun : Thick smoke from an intense forest fire engulfed Srinagar in Uttarakhand's Pauri Garhwal district, causing significant delays in aerial firefighting operations by the Indian Air Force (IAF).
The IAF's MI-17 helicopters, which were scheduled to begin water-dropping operations at 6:30 am, remained grounded until visibility improved.
Vinay Shankar Pandey, Commissioner of Garhwal, told that the dense smoke caused by the forest fire hindered the helicopter's ability to take off. He indicated that the Indian Air Force's firefighting efforts would commence shortly after the visibility increases.
"Air operation could not start since this morning due to the smoke of forest fire, he said that the Air Force's fire extinguishing operation is likely to start in the next one hour," Pandey said.
Despite the delayed start, the IAF successfully launched its firefighting efforts after conditions allowed. A post on X at 7:27 am by the Indian Air Force announced that its MI-17 V5 helicopters had begun Bambi Bucket operations in the Pauri Garhwal sector.
"In response to the raging forest fires at Pauri Garhwal sector in Uttrakhand, IAF provided the much-needed relief by undertaking Bambi Bucket ops by its Mi17 V5 helicopters. Over 4500 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 tweet read.
Due to the ongoing forest fires, Wing Commander Vivek Kumar noted that the helicopter's ability to take off from GVK helipad Srinagar was hampered by poor visibility. Another attempt to launch the firefighting operation was scheduled for around noon.
"Another attempt will be made to take off around 12:00 pm," Kumar said.
These aerial firefighting efforts by the IAF, in close coordination with the Uttarakhand government, are part of the ongoing battle against forest fires that have been raging in the region, disrupting normal life and posing significant environmental risks.
Earlier, in the forest fire over the Pauri Garhwal region of Uttarakhand, a 65-year-old woman died in the field while trying to douse the fire on Monday.
According to the officials, the Pauri Police in Uttarakhand have brought the fire in the forests under control.
The Air Force took the lead in extinguishing the fire in different parts of Pauri district. The Air Force helicopters sprayed water on the fire in the Doob Srikot forests.
Pauri police stated, "So far, there are 6 small active fire spots. A major fire was controlled after around 8 days and 12 hours. Two FIRs have been registered against 35 unidentified persons in connection with the fire incidents and a total of 8-9 people have been arrested."
The police have assured that strict action will be taken against those who damage forest resources.
The state's Chief Secretary, Radha Raturi, announced on Monday a series of measures aimed at controlling the spread of the flames and mitigating further damage.
"Incidents of forest fire have increased," said Raturi, acknowledging the alarming rise in fire incidents across the state.
Raturi revealed that the Indian Air Force (IAF) 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.
She also mentioned that the government is planning a pilot project to implement this technology in Uttarakhand, starting with the Pauri district.
Meanwhile, to prevent further incidents, the state government has banned the burning of agricultural residues and waste in urban areas.