DGCA begins probe into Kedarnath chopper crash, death toll rises to 7
Darpan News Desk IANS, 18 Oct, 2022 12:19 PM
New Delhi, Oct 18 (IANS) Aviation regulator DGCA has launched a probe into the Kedarnath helicopter crash in which seven people, including the pilot, were killed on Tuesday.
A senior DGCA official said that a team will be sent soon to the crash site to do a detailed probe.
The helicopter, carrying pilgrims, crashed after takeoff from the Kedarnath shrine near Garud Chatti in Rudraprayag at around 11.40 a.m.
"Aryan Aviation Bell-407 helicopter VT-RPN with passengers took off from Kedarnathji Dham for GuptKashi. The weather was cloudy over Garud Chatti. In a valley near Garud Chatti a loud noise was heard and the helicopter caught fire," said the DGCA official.
"As per the preliminary information received, a Bell 407 helicopter VT-RPN belonging to a Delhi-based NSOP holder M/s Aryan Aviation crashed on the way from Kedarnath to Guptkashi, possibly due to bad weather...," said the official.
Earlier, in August this year, five helicopter operators, who were carrying pilgrims to Kedarnath shrine, were each fined Rs 5 lakh each by the aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The operators were fined for not maintaining correct flying records. The regulator also suspended officials from two other operators for three months for flouting safety rules.
The deceased, identified as Megha Kayal, 40, was working as a doctor in London Milton Keynes University Hospital. Prior to this, she was a doctor at Apollo hospital, Sarita Vihar, Delhi.
A gofundme has raised US$70,000 for the victim family. The bodies of the four family members – who have been identified after autopsies as Jagdish Patel, 39, his wife Vaishaliben Patel, 37, daughter Vihangi Patel, 11, and son Dharmik Patel, 3 – are currently lying in a morgue in Winnipeg.
Senior advocate and Additional Solicitor General Rupinder Singh Suri passed away, sources said here on Monday. According to reports, he was battling Covid-related complications for over a week. He is survived by his wife Gurvinder and advocate daughters Suruchi and Simar.
A bench headed by Chief Justice N.V. Ramana told the Punjab government counsel to advise his government to refrain from launching criminal cases against the political opponents, just before the election. The top court directed Majithia to surrender on February 24 before the trial court and seek regular bail.
The chief minister further said that from Monday onwards, they have started recouping farmers' loss. "By providing them with a financial assistance of Rs 20,000 per acre, Delhi is paying the highest compensation amount across the nation," he tweeted, adding that they have handed over cheques amounting to Rs 2.5 lakh or 3 lakh.
Addressing PLC workers after filing his nomination papers from Patiala Urban, the former chief minister trashed Charanjit Channi's tall claims of delivering on the Congress promises in 111 days, pointing out that everything that he was claiming as his personal achievement "was accomplished by my government, including creation of jobs, and action social welfare schemes.
