A massive fire broke out in the forest area of Sariska Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan’s Alwar district, reported news agency ANI, quoting a forest official on Tuesday.
“We were informed about the fire two days ago. We took the help of locals to control the fire. A total of nine square km of area is up in the flames as of now. We are trying to restrict the fire so that it does not engulf the valley. Damage will be ascertained once the fire is doused,” said Sudarshan Sharma, the DFO of Alwar.
Helicopters of the Indian Air Force have been deployed to douse the blaze.
“As the fire was massive, efforts of locals were not enough. So we intimated the fire department in Jaipur. They deployed two choppers from Delhi to douse the fire. Areas having high tiger and rural people’s population are our priority,” said Sunita Pankaj, the ADM of Alwar.
The cause of the incident is yet to be ascertained.
Tiger movement in the area has been affected by the fire, said a forest official.
“Villagers residing in the periphery of the fire-affected area have been asked to move to safety,” the official said.
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