How did helipad collapse shortly after landing of President Droupadi Murmu's helicopter in Kerala?

The chopper had landed at the Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium in Pathanamthitta's Pramadam, carrying President Droupadi Murmu for her Sabarimala visit.

Updated on: Oct 22, 2025, 17:39:21 IST

By HT News Desk

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Part of a helipad on which President Droupadi Murmu's helicopter landed in Kerala's Pathanamthitta collapsed shortly after the touchdown on Wednesday morning, necessitating the need for policemen and other personnel to push the chopper's wheels out of the caved in portion.

Police and fire department personnel physically push a helicopter as a portion of the helipad tarmac sank in, after a chopper carrying President Droupadi Murmu landed at Pramadam Stadium, in Kerala on Wednesday. (ANI Video Grab)

The chopper, carrying President Droupadi Murmu, had landed at the Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium in Pathanamthitta's Pramadam for her Sabarimala visit.

Why did the helipad collapse?

A senior police officer of the district said that the decision to land President Murmu's helicopter at the Rajiv Gandhi stadium was made at the last moment, after which the helipad was created there late on Tuesday, according to PTI news agency.

The landing was originally planned at Nilackal near Pamba, but it was changed to Pramadam due to inclement weather.

The concrete of the helipad at the Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium had not set as it was built overnight, the officer said.

"The concrete had not set completely and therefore, it could not handle the helicopter's weight when it landed and depressions were formed where the wheels touched the ground," PTI quoted the officer.

After the President left for Pamba by road, several policemen and fire force personnel were seen pushing the helicopter's wheels out of the small depressions created when it landed on the concrete.

The President landed in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday evening for her four-day official Kerala visit. She left on Wednesday morning for Pathanamthitta district, where the hill shrine of Sabarimala is located.

From Pramadam, Murmu left for Pamba, the foothills of Sabarimala, via road.

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HT News Desk
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