Ranit Kr. Singh , Shimla - The Indian Air Force (IAF) deployed Mi-17 and Chinook helicopters on Tuesday to battle a massive forest fire threatening the area near the Kasauli Air Force Station. Despite extensive efforts by local fire tenders and forest department teams, the blaze rapidly engulfed large swathes of inaccessible terrain, forcing authorities to lift water from Chandigarh's Sukhna Lake for aerial firefighting operations.

Simultaneously, another major wildfire broke out around 1:00 PM in the Malog and Rajhana forests under Shimla's Mashobra Range, quickly destroying several hectares of land. While ground teams briefly managed to contain the Malog fire and partially control the Rajhana blaze after five hours of intense operations, dense smoke and flames continued to spread into the night.

Local officials have attributed the sudden surge in these destructive forest fires to a sharp rise in temperatures over the past few days. Emergency operations by combined forest and fire departments remain underway across both regions to fully contain the blazes and prevent further environmental damage.