Nainital/Dehradun: The Uttarakhand govt on Sunday enlisted the help of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) to quell the forest infernos inching towards Nainital town even as the state recorded eight new forest fire incidents, scorching approximately 11.75 hectares of forest land by afternoon . Most fires occurred in the Kumaon region, impacting 5.5 hectares, followed by Garhwal with 1.75 hectares, and Protected Forest Areas (PFA) where 4.5 hectares were affected. While an Indian Air Force MI-17 helicopter had on Saturday managed to contain the blaze near the IAF base camp in Lariyakta, about 6km from Nainital town, the fires continued to rage in various other locations on Sun. A few offenders were also caught. “Forest officials have apprehended eight individuals attempting to ignite fires in the reserved forest area of Khrisu in Pauri Garhwal and Bageshwar. They face charges under the Indian Forest Act and are being presented in court,” Nishant Verma, the state’s nodal officer for forest fires, said. Meanwhile, NDRF dispatched 41 personnel to combat the forest fires in Haldwani. Officials said the contingent has taken charge of firefighting efforts in Nainital’s Manora Range, Bhowali, Bhimtal, and surrounding regions. In addition, the Army’s assistance is also being taken in firefighting efforts. Lt Col Manish Srivastava, public relations officer (defence) based in Dehradun, said, “A total of 80 personnel, including officers and JCOs, have been deployed, with 40 stationed in Almora district and the remainder in Nainital district since Saturday.” Nainital divisional forest officer (DFO) Chandrashekhar Joshi said that Maheskhan forest area and Manora Range in Bhowali were particularly critical. Nainital conservator of forests BijuLal TR added that the situation was accentuated by the fact that “the district has not received any rainfall, and there is no prediction of showers in the coming days.”Nainital fire station officer (FSO). Kishor Upadhyay, said minor fire incidents were reported in Betalghat and Shyamkhet in Bhimtal, and continued vigilance is required to safeguard against further outbreaks. In six months since Nov 1, about 735 hectares of forest land have been gutted in 606 fire incidents,
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