Uttarakhand CM Tirath Singh Holds Emergency Meet As Forest Fires Flare Up; Centre Rushes NDRF Teams, Helicopters

The meeting took place as at least four people and seven animals died in the fire that broke out in 62 hectares of forest area in the last 24 hours. The state government has also asked the forest department officials not to take any leave and keep a close watch on the situation.

Image: PTI

Dehradun: As the forest fires flare up in Uttarakhand, Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat on Sunday held an emergency meeting with senior officials of the forest and disaster management departments besides all district magistrates to assess the situation and discuss ways to effectively control it.

The meeting took place as at least four people and seven animals died in the fire that broke out in 62 hectares of forest area in the last 24 hours.

The state government has also asked the forest department officials not to take any leave and keep a close watch on the situation.

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The Centre also rushed two helicopters to Uttarakhand on Sunday to bring the situation under control after the Chief Minister informed Union Home Minister Amit Shah about the current forest fire situation in the state.

Shah said the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams will be sent to the state to “minimise loss of lives and property due to the wildfires”.

“I have spoken to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat to get an update on forest fires in the state. Instructions have been issued to send helicopters and National Disaster Response Force teams to the state to minimise loss of lives and property due to the wildfires,” he tweeted.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="hi" dir="ltr">उत्तराखंड के जंगलों में आग के सम्बंध में मैंने प्रदेश के मुख्यमंत्री श्री <a href="https://twitter.com/TIRATHSRAWAT?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" rel='nofollow'>@TIRATHSRAWAT</a> से बात कर जानकारी ली।<br><br>आग पर काबू पाने और जानमाल के नुकसान को रोकने के लिए केंद्र सरकार ने तुरंत <a href="https://twitter.com/NDRFHQ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" rel='nofollow'>@NDRFHQ</a> की टीमें और हेलिकॉप्टर उत्तराखंड सरकार को उपलब्ध कराने के निर्देश दे दिए हैं।</p>&mdash; Amit Shah (@AmitShah) <a href="https://twitter.com/AmitShah/status/1378611261953372160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" rel='nofollow'>April 4, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

There are 40 active fire spots, according to forest officials, in the forests of Garhwal and Kumaon regions with Nainital, Almora, Tehri and Pauri districts being the worst-hit, PTI reported.