Overview
- The fire, detected on January 9 in the Painkhanda/Pulna–Bhyundar area of the Nanda Devi range, lies in steep high-altitude terrain that has thwarted ground access.
- Officials estimate roughly 15 hectares affected between the Lakshman Ganga and Alaknanda/Pushpawati rivers, with about 7 km aerial distance from the Valley of Flowers and 22–25 km by the ground route.
- After an aerial assessment on Wednesday, forest authorities reported the blaze is confined to small surface pockets with smoke from smouldering material and is expected to fade naturally within two days.
- The state has requested Indian Air Force assistance; helicopters conducted surveys, but water-bombing was ruled impractical due to distant refilling at Tehri Lake and limited drop capacity.
- Forest and meteorological officials attribute the persistence to a dry winter with scant snowfall, low humidity and heavy leaf litter, as Uttarakhand continues to record elevated fire alerts.