Uttarakhand: Four forest workers killed while extinguishing fire in Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary
Dehradun, Jun 13: Four forest workers were killed and four were injured while extinguishing a fire at the Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary under the Civil Soyam Forest Division in the Almora district of Uttarakhand, officials said on Thursday.
The deceased were identified as Binsar Range Forest 'Beat' Officer Trilok Singh Mehta, 'Fire Watcher' Karan Arya, Provincial Armed Constabulary Jawan Puran Singh and daily wage worker Diwan Ram, they said.
According to Civil Soyam Forest Divisional Officer Dhruv Singh Martolia, the incident occurred around 3.45 pm when eight forest workers were sent to extinguish a fire that had broken out at the Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary.
Martolia said that as soon as the team got down from their vehicle, the fire escalated due to strong winds and four of the workers were charred to death. Meanwhile, the other workers were injured and rushed to Haldwani Base Hospital for treatment.
In a post on X, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said, "Very heartbreaking news has been received about the death of 4 forest workers due to forest fire in Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary. In this hour of grief, our government stands with the families of the deceased and is committed to provide all possible help. An ex-gratia amount of Rs 10 lakh has been announced to the families of each deceased."
"In a high-level meeting with the Chief Secretary, Principal Secretary and Chief Conservator of Forests (HoFF), instructions were given to immediately control the forest fire in Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary with the help of Air Force, by spraying water on the affected forest area using helicopters and other necessary resources as before and to control the fire as quickly as possible," he added.
Special Secretary to the Chief Minister, Shri Parag Madhukar Dhakate said that the situation is being monitored closely. The post-mortem of the deceased is being conducted.
Last month, a resin factory in Almora district was engulfed in forest fire and three workers trying to extinguish the fire were killed.
Due to hot and dry weather, forest fires have started raging again in Uttarakhand. According to the Uttarakhand forest fire bulletin, seven incidents were reported in the last 24 hours in which 4.50 hectares of forest were affected.
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Cong functionary arrested on POCSO charges
Bengaluru (PTI): A Congress functionary has been arrested on POCSO charges for alleged inappropriate behaviour with a 16-year-old minor girl.
The 40-year-old complainant has also accused the Congress functionary Anand P of assault, criminal intimidation and coercion, police said.
According to the FIR, Anand allegedly used to visit his house and developed an illicit relationship with his wife.
When he questioned their relationship, his wife and Anand allegedly assaulted him and attempted to kill him. The complaint also alleges repeated acts of violence against the children, police said.
The accused and the complainant’s wife allegedly assaulted the children multiple times with sticks and stabbed them with a knife, causing bleeding injuries, according to the FIR.
The complainant claimed to possess photographic evidence of the incidents, and he alleged inappropriate behaviour by Anand towards his minor daughter.
“Anand has also inappropriately touched my 16-year-old daughter and indecently spoken to her,” the FIR quoted him as saying.
Police said the complaint further accused Anand P of criminal intimidation and coercion in property matters.
Police said a case has been registered based on the complaint, and further investigation is underway.
