Excelsior Correspondent
KATRA, May 24: The pilgrimage to the Vaishno Devi shrine resumed this morning after a halt since yesterday afternoon following a raging fire in the Trikuta Hills, which was controlled today.
The fire was brought under control by Air Force helicopters equipped with specialized buckets carrying approximately 2,500 litres of water at a time.
Using specialized ‘Bambi buckets’ suspended on a cable, the helicopters poured thousands of litres of water, sourced from the nearby Reasi reservoir, on the flames.
The authorities have also deployed a large number of Forest officials who are being assisted by the Shrine Board officials as well as locals to douse the flames, which started from Hinkoti area, spread to Saket point and then towards the Sanjhichat helipad area.
After the fire was controlled, the stranded pilgrims at base camp Katra and Adh-Kunwari were allowed to continue the Yatra from the old track while the batter car track was still closed as precautionary measure.
The fire was first doused in the area of the new track from Adhkuwari to Bhawan. “Its was a daunting task keeping in mind the challenging terrain and high tension cables in the area” said the captain of the lead aircraft Wing Commander Vikram.
Operation of these types requires special skills by the pilot who flies with a very heavy load underslung. “We trained to respond to these types of situations whenever demanded. The operations are scheduled to continue through the day till the fire is contained” said Wing Commander Rahul, the captain of the second aircraft.
A reccee of the area was carried out yesterday to ascertain the complexities of the operations.
Pertinent to mention that the pilgrimage was suspended yesterday as the fire spread in
the hills, the abode of Mata Vaishno Devi in Katra, Though the fire was controlled near the track, last evening, it continues to smoulder in some parts of the forest.
As the fire was close to the path used by pilgrims and battery cars to reach the holy shrine, around 25,000 devotees were stopped at Katra base camp.
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