In a single stroke, over 80 houses were gutted after a fire broke out at a village in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar District.
The blazing fire wiped out the entire village of Sukhai, leaving only four houses intact. The village lies on the Ladakh border and is cut-off from the rest of the state. The local administration says it has dispatched relief material by air and is looking to control the damage caused by the fire.
Out of 84 houses, 80 in the Sukhnoi village in the Warwan block of the Kisthwar district were gutted in a fire that broke out late last night...The villagers had no option but to stay in the open last night as it is a remote village and tents will not help them due to snowfall in the area during the coming months.Ghulam Nabi Balwan, Deputy Commissioner (DC) Kishtwar
The cause of the fire has not been known and investigations are underway.
As the winters are fast approaching and it would be difficult for the people to reconstruct their houses or stay in the tents, they have decided to stay in rented accommodation during the winter, the government will pay the rent for them.Ghulam Nabi Balwan, Deputy Commissioner (DC) Kishtwar
In another incident, a massive wild fire broke out in the Doda sector on Saturday, causing significant loss of green cover and biodiversity.
Video Editor: Ashutosh Bhardwaj
(With inputs from PTI)
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