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.