Seven pilgrims bound for the sacred Kedarnath shrine tragically lost their lives in a devastating helicopter crash early Sunday in Uttarakhand's Rudraprayag.
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| Photo credit _Hindustan Times |
On Sunday, a tragic helicopter crash in Uttarakhand's Rudraprayag claimed the lives of seven individuals, including a family from Yavatmal, Maharashtra. The family, consisting of a couple and their two-year-old daughter, was aboard the ill-fated helicopter. Heartbreakingly, their young son escaped the tragedy, as he had stayed behind with his grandfather.
Seven pilgrims bound for the sacred Kedarnath shrine perished in a catastrophic helicopter crash on Sunday morning, as the chopper plummeted into the misty, treacherous forests of Gaurikund in Rudraprayag, engulfed by perilous low visibility.
A devastating helicopter crash in Uttarakhand’s Rudraprayag district claimed the lives of seven individuals, including a family from Yavatmal, Maharashtra, who were en route to the revered Kedarnath shrine.
The victims from Yavatmal were identified as Rajkumar Jaiswal, a prominent transport businessman, his wife Shraddha, and their two-year-old daughter Kashi, according to former Wani MLA Vishvas Nandekar, as quoted by PTI. The family had set out from Wani, Yavatmal, on June 12 for their pilgrimage, as reported by News18.
Tragically, their young son, Vivaan, escaped the disaster, having remained in Pandharkawda, Maharashtra, under the care of his grandfather. The ill-fated crash, which occurred early Sunday morning in the dense forests of Gaurikund amid poor visibility, also took the lives of the helicopter’s pilot, Rajveer Singh Chauhan, Vikram Singh Rawat of the Badrinath-Uttarakhand temple trust, and two Uttar Pradesh residents, Vinood Devi (66) and Tushti Singh (19).
According to an official statement, the helicopter was carrying a total of seven individuals five passengers, including one infant, and one crew member, the pilot.
The flight initially departed from Guptkashi at 5:10 AM and successfully landed at the Shri Kedarnath Ji helipad at 5:18 AM. After a brief halt, the helicopter took off once again from Kedarnath at 5:19 AM, heading back toward Guptkashi.
However, shortly after takeoff, the helicopter tragically crashed near Gaurikund. Preliminary information suggests that poor visibility due to inclement weather may have contributed to the crash, though a thorough investigation is being undertaken by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) to determine the exact cause.
The recent helicopter crash follows a series of tragic aviation incidents in the country.
Just days earlier, an Air India flight en route to London crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad, resulting in the deaths of 241 out of the 242 people on board, along with several fatalities on the ground.
On May 8, another helicopter, which was heading to Gangotri Dham, crashed in Uttarkashi district, claiming six lives. More recently, on June 7, a helicopter bound for Kedarnath was forced to make an emergency landing on a road due to a technical malfunction shortly after takeoff. In that incident, the pilot sustained injuries, but all five devotees on board were rescued safely.
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