Kerala sends police to help students' rescue in Tamil Nadu

Thiruvananthapuram: Authorities here on Sunday rushed a police team to help in rescue operations of over a dozen students caught up in a fire in Theni forest area in Tamil Nadu bordering Idukki district, Kerala Police chief Loknath Behra said.

Behra said instructions have been issued to Idukki district police chief to give all assistance in the rescue operation.

"Medicines and food also have been sent to the spot. Behra spoke to his Tamil Nadu counterpart and assured of all help. He also asked Kerala State Fire and Rescue chief for all possible assistance," a media statement from Behra's office late Sunday night said.

Theni borders the famed Thekkady tourist destination in Kerala. 

Authorities in Tamil Nadu were engaged in the operation to rescue students caught in the forest fire, with Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman saying the Indian Air Force has been pressed into service.

The students, who are from Erode and Coimbatore, were trekking in the Kurangani Hills when they got caught in the fire.