Helicopter services halted after June 15 crash resume on Char Dham route
Sunday’s crash that killed seven people was the fifth incident involving choppers deployed in six weeks on the Char Dham route
DEHRADUN: The Uttarakhand government on Tuesday resumed chopper services on the Char Dham route that were halted after a helicopter carrying pilgrims from Kedarnath crashed on June 15, killing all seven people aboard.
The crash was the fifth incident involving choppers deployed on the Char Dham route in six weeks: three emergency landings and another crash have killed six people during this period.
Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA) chief executive officer (CEO) Sonika (who goes by a single name) said the chopper services had been resumed with stricter monitoring.
The helicopters will fly only if the weather conditions are favourable, she said.
“After making arrangements for close monitoring...the chopper services on the Char Dham route have been resumed...we are in touch with teams from DGCA, Met department and other concerned agencies...and operators and pilots,” she said.
She said that both the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and UCADA will closely monitor all shuttle services, and strict action will be taken against operators in the event of any violations.
A Bell 407 helicopter operated by private firm Aryan Aviation Pvt Ltd took off from a helipad in Kedarnath at around 5:20am. It was headed towards Guptkashi for a 10-minute journey when it crashed near Gaurikund, the starting point for the arduous 16-km trek to the Kedarnath shrine.
After Sunday’s crash, the state government suspended the operations of Aryan Aviation and ordered aviation companies to halt helicopter operations in the region “as a safety precaution”.
The crash highlighted growing safety concerns over helicopter operations serving the Char Dham pilgrimage route, which includes four sacred Hindu temples in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand. The routes attract tens of thousands of pilgrims annually, many of whom use helicopters to navigate the treacherous mountain terrain.
The deceased included pilot Rajveer Singh Chauhan, 35, a former army officer from Jaipur; a family of three from Maharashtra — Rajkumar Suresh Jaiswal, 41, his wife Shradha, 35, and their daughter Kashi, 2; two passengers from Uttar Pradesh, Vinod Devi, 66, and her granddaughter Tusti Singh, 19; and temple committee member Vikram Singh Rawat, 46.
The state police registered a first information report (FIR) against two officials of Aryan Aviation Pvt Limited. Kaushik Pathak, accountable manager of the company, and Vikas Tomar, manager of the company, were booked under section 105 (punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and relevant sections of the Aircraft Act on the complaint of revenue sub-inspector Rajiv Nakholia.
