Rajouri, June 9: A massive forest fire broke out across several locations in the Rajouri Forest Division on Tuesday, triggering an extensive firefighting operation by the Forest Department, Forest Protection Force (FPF), and local residents to prevent the blaze from spreading further.
The fire has affected forest areas in Khadian, Androla, Chakkli, Miahadi and the Bathuni block, with authorities deploying their entire available workforce to contain the flames amid challenging terrain and limited accessibility.
Forest Department official Rajesh Kumar said firefighting teams have been mobilised across the affected areas despite logistical difficulties.
“The entire staff has been deployed. The fire is in the Chakkli, Khadian and Androla areas. This place is too remote for fire vehicles to reach. Hopefully, the fire will be doused by evening,” he said.
Officials said the remoteness of the forest areas has hampered the movement of firefighting equipment, forcing personnel to rely largely on manual methods to control the blaze.
Local residents have joined the operation and are working alongside forest officials to stop the fire from advancing into adjoining areas. Villagers have reportedly been engaged in firefighting efforts since Monday.
A resident participating in the operation said the fire was difficult to contain due to its intensity and scale.
“We were working until late night to douse the fire yesterday. I reached home around midnight. We are trying to extinguish the fire with the department, but the fire is huge and very difficult to control,” he said.
Authorities have not yet assessed the extent of damage to forest cover or wildlife, and no casualties or injuries have been reported so far.
The cause of the fire remains unknown. Forest officials said the situation is being closely monitored and efforts have been intensified to prevent the blaze from spreading to additional forest compartments.
Meanwhile, authorities remain on high alert as firefighting operations continue across the affected areas of the Rajouri Forest Division. (Agencies)
