Hyderabad, Sep 3 (Inditop.com) It is not just state-of-the-art technology that is being deployed to trace the missing helicopter carrying Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, the authorities are also using the services of the tribals living in the dense Nallamalla forests.
While fighter jets and low-flying aircraft of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) are hovering over the forest area to capture images, on the ground the tribals have joined army and police personnel in the search operations.
Familiar with the difficult terrain in one of the biggest forests in India, tribals are lending a helping hand to the authorities. The government had already made an appeal to people living in the forests to help in the search.
At least 14 teams of Chenchu tribals who inhabit the forest area in Kurnool district have fanned out in different directions to trace the missing chopper.
“The tribals are more familiar with the exit routes. They can help the chief minister and others who might have been stranded in the dense forests after landing,” said Andhra Pradesh Finance Minister K. Rosaiah, who is overseeing the search operations.
Even some surrendered Maoists among the tribals are helping the authorities. Since the forest area was a key stronghold of Maoists till about four years ago, they know the inhospitable terrain better than anybody else.
The tribals are accompanied by the personnel of Greyhounds, the elite anti-Maoist force of the state police and the anti-terrorist force OCTOPUS.
These forces were pressed into service to deal with any Maoist movement in the forests. Though the Maoist activity in the region has come down drastically in recent years due to successful operations by police, the authorities did not want to take any chances.
Nallamalla forests are spread over four districts – Kurnool, Mahabubnagar, Guntur and Prakasam.
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