Forest fire in Car Nicobar under control

Port Blair, Mar 22 (UNI) A forest fire, that broke out on March 18, in the remote Car Nicobar area of Andaman and Nicobar islands is now under control, police sources informed here today.

''We have sealed the location and the fire is under control,'' Nicobar Superintendent of Police Narendra Singh told UNI today.

Mr Bundela said the fire might have broken out due to intense heat of summer. One hundred hectares of marshy area full of dry logs, bushes and grass were destroyed in the fire, he added.

The Police department had also sought the support of the fire fighting unit of Car Nicobar Air Force base and water tankers of Andaman Public Works Department.

''We used Earthmovers and Bulldozers to isolate the fire. We are monitoring the situation closely,'' he said adding that no case of casualty was reported so far.

However, Mr Bundela negated the idea that the fire was caused by a blast.

Incidentally, nearly a month back, the police had unearthed huge amount of ammunition from the island, reported to have been hidden by Japanese forces during World War II, the SP said.

Meanwhile, tribal leaders of Car Nicobar have urged the Lt Governor of the territory to send more fire tenders to this tsunami hit island for dealing with such a situation in future.

UNI