Overnight rains on Tuesday in many parts of Uttarakhand has brought partial relief to the raging forest fires in Uttarakhand, which have destroyed over 2200 hectares of forest land. Shimla in Himachal Pradesh also received some rainfall yesterday but active fires have been reported in at least 9 locations.
Higher reaches of Rudraprayag, including Kedarnath and Gaurikund received rain on Tuesday, while the parts of Uttarkashi, Chamoli and Pithoragarh districts received light rain.
A major relief is in store as the weather department has forecast widespread rain and thundershowers in the state till May 5. “Light to moderate rain will be experienced throughout the state by Wednesday morning. This will continue for 72 hours,” Director of the Dehradun Meteorological Centre Bikram Singh said.
The fire entered the Corbett Tiger Reserve but officials said it had been contained. “Like other forests, fire incidents have been occurring in the Corbett Tiger Reserve too, but all fires are being controlled and no damage has been caused to the wildlife,” Director of Corbett Tiger Reserve Samir Sinha said.
11,160 personnel had been deputed, who have been working round the clock to control the erratic fires, said Additional Chief Secretary S. Ramaswami. The NDRF teams continued operations, along with the IAF choppers.
While the NDRF has claimed that 70% of the affected area has been brought under control, the authorities have said that only 11 fires remain in the state, adding that small fires remain the cause of concern.
Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said that the Centre is keeping a close watch on the situation, assuring that the fire would be brought under control in the next three to four days. By Tuesday, 1,591 fires had been recorded, covering 3,466 hectares. On Tuesday, 121 fresh fires broke out.
The fire, which started in the first week of February, has killed seven people and destroyed 2,269 hectares of forested land.