Helipad terminal damaged in mysterious fire in Katra, Jammu
Jammu: A mysterious fire broke out at a helipad terminal in Katra early Sunday, damaging part of the facility used by pilgrims travelling to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Reasi district of Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
According to Kashmir Media Service, officials said the blaze was reported around 3:15 am when the terminal was closed and no pilgrims were present inside. There were no reports of any casualties.
The fire was brought under control within nearly half an hour after staff, security personnel and fire and emergency services responded to the incident.
<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet” data-media-max-width=”560″><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>Fire breaks out at Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board's helipad in Katra, no casualty. <a href=”https://t.co/h7zjJTxtBv”>pic.twitter.com/h7zjJTxtBv</a></p>— News Arena India (@NewsArenaIndia) <a href=”https://x.com/NewsArenaIndia/status/2101551568877449693?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>September 20, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src=”https://platform.x.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″></script>
Officials said the fire was suspected to have been caused by a short circuit. The blaze damaged computers installed at the ticket counter and reduced a coffee shop inside the terminal to ashes.
The helipad terminal serves as a key transit facility for pilgrims visiting the shrine located atop the Trikuta hills. Officials said an assessment was underway to determine the overall extent of damage caused to the facility.
Observers say back-to-back mishaps involving Indian Air Force and civil aviation infrastructure inside India and the occupied territory, ranging from crashes and emergency landings to fires caused by short circuits, point to a lack of professionalism, poor maintenance and negligence on the part of the authorities, raising serious questions about passenger safety.
