Neiphu Rio visits Dzukou Valley as wildlife fire continues for sixth day

Spokesman of the Eastern Air Command at Shillong, Wing Commander Ratnakar Singh said that the IAF choppers have been flying regular sorties to drop waters to douse the fire. The IAF choppers have been using Bambi Bucket to drop waters on the fire since last few days.

Tezpur: The Wildfire in Nagaland's pristine Dzukou Valley continued on Tuesday even as the Indian Air Force's Mi-17 choppers made at least 56 sorties and sprayed almost 1 lakh litres of water to douse the fire.

Johnny Ruangmei, OSD (Officer on special duty) to the state Home Department on Tuesday said that a huge team of NDRF, SDRF, Nagaland police, Indian Air Force and some local organizations have been working relentlessly to douse the fire which had already damaged over 200 acres of forest land. He said that the government is now mooting to deploy drones to assess the damage.

On Tuesday Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphu Rio undertook an aerial survey of the Valley to take stock of the situation. Although Rio planned to land his chopper on the Valley he could not do so due to the strong wind blowing over the Valley.

Spokesman of the Eastern Air Command at Shillong, Wing Commander Ratnakar Singh said that the IAF choppers have been flying regular sorties to drop waters to douse the fire. The IAF choppers have been using Bambi Bucket to drop waters on the fire since last few days.

Locals suspect that the fire has also killed huge numbers of Tragopan, the state bird of Nagaland.

The Valley that borders Nagaland and Manipur witnessed wildfire on the December 30 and the government sought the help of IAF to douse the wildlife that continued to ravage the pristine Valley, famous for Dzukou Lily, a unique flower that blooms only in the Dzukou Valley.

Manipur CM N Biren Singh had also undertaken an aerial survey of the Dzukou Valley and said that fire is still visible in five locations below Mt. Esii range towards Koziirii Forest.

Dzukou Valley, about 30 km from Nagaland’s capital Kohima, is a popular trekking destination known for its flora and fauna. It is also home to the endangered Blyth’s Tragopan — Nagaland’s state bird.

Officials have not been able to ascertain the reason for the fire but said it may have been the result of trekkers or campers leaving their resting site without extinguishing their campfire.