Dzükou valley fire ‘under control’

January 5, 2021 65 Views No Comment

DIMAPUR, JAN 4 (NPN) : The overall situation in Dzükou Valley, where a fire has been raging since December 29 and has turned vast areas into cinders, was now more or less under control.

Informing this, deputy commissioner (DC) Kohima and District Disaster Management Authority chairman Mohammed Ali Shihab A told a review meeting here on Monday that fire line cutting was carried out in full swing, while four India Air Force (IAF) helicopters, two helicopters from Rangapahar Military Station and two from Dimapur civil airfield were carrying out operations to contain the inferno by dropping water from Bambi buckets.

He said 14 sorties were carried out during the day and 28,000 litres of water was dropped by these choppers, taking the total number of sorties till date to 56 and 75,000 litres of water dropped. He informed the meeting that IAF would be operating its choppers from sunrise to sunset on Tuesday to contain the spread of fire.

Shihab claimed that, as per IAF assessment, the fire was well within control and expressed his optimism that the situation would be totally brought under control in a day or two. He said IAF was carrying out the entire operation in coordination with the State government, Indian Army, Assam Rifles, Dimapur civil airfield, Kohima district administration and Indian Oil Corporation.

The DC said Addl SP Kohima and SDO (C) Jakhama went to Khuzama to assess the spread of fire from Dzükou valley, adding that National Disaster Response Force and Manipur police team were seen at the site of the incident coordinating the situation.

In Monday’s operation to contain the fire, he said 78 personnel were involved, which included 17 Kohima police personnel, 10 personnel from 4th NAP, five from forest department and 46 from NDRF (including those stationed at base camp).

Mentioning that the operation team, except NDRF personnel who are staying back at the base camp, returned to Kohima, Shihab said the operation would resume on Tuesday with the teams departing Viswema Dzükou entry point at 5 a.m. SP Kohima, Manoj Kumar, ADC Lithrongla Tongpi Rutsa, DFO Raj Kumar and others also attended the meeting.

After the meeting, the DC also briefed about the entire situation in Dzükou to commissioner of Nagaland Rovilatuo Mor.

CM to conduct aerial survey: Nagaland chief minister, Neiphiu Rio informed that he would be conducting an aerial survey of Dzükou valley on Tuesday. “I will be making an aerial survey of the latest forest fire situation at Dzukou valley that is spreading across Nagaland and Manipur. There has been a joint effort to tackle the situation and Nagaland side is more or less under control,” he said in a tweet.

Corrigendum: Apropos the news “Fire in Dzükou yet to be contained”, published on January 4, it is clarified that “the memorandum signed between governments of Nagaland and Manipur on November 26, 2018, wherein only two official routes, one each from Viswema and Jakhama villages, are to be used while visiting the valley,” and not as rendered. (Correspondent)

Source: http://www.nagalandpost.com/dz%C3%BCkou-valley-fire-under-control/226808.html