Five days after Russian paraglider Alexey Ashurov went missing in the hills of Himachal Pradesh, his compatriot was found dead Tuesday, police said.
“This (Tuesday) evening, we came to know that Russian pilot Elliyayudin died in the remote Tang area in Kangra district,” Kangra’s Superintendent of Police Atul Kumar Fulzele told IANS.
He said one injured pilot, identified as Tenis Soyawa, was rescued from the hills.
“The injured paraglider was rescued from the spot where the body of Elliyayudin was recovered,” he said.
Meanwhile, officials of the Russian embassy in Delhi on Tuesday approached Indian authorities to help locating Ashurov.
“We approached the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Tuesday to help in locating Alexey Ashurov, who has been missing for the past five days in the hills of Himachal Pradesh,” an embassy official told IANS over phone.
The official, who refused to identify himself as he was not authorised to speak to the media, said the embassy sent a communication to the MEA to ask the authorities concerned to help in tracing the 41-year-old paraglider.
Ashurov took off from Billing, some 80 km from the district headquarters town of Kangra, for Bir and lost his way due to strong winds and went missing Oct 23.
{{/usCountry}}Ashurov took off from Billing, some 80 km from the district headquarters town of Kangra, for Bir and lost his way due to strong winds and went missing Oct 23.
{{/usCountry}}His friends lodged a complaint with police on Monday.
Fulzele said that rescue teams have been despatched to locate the paraglider.
“One team of trekkers has been sent to the tribal Holi area in Chamba district where we have reports that he might have landed,” he said.
Earlier, another Russian paraglider, Dimitri, was reported missing in the high mountains and was rescued Monday from an altitude of more than 3,000 metres.
Bir-Billing is considered one of the finest aero sports sites in the world.
The Himachal Pradesh Tourism and Civil Aviation Department (HPTCAD), the organiser of the annual pre-world cup paragliding championship at Bir-Billing, has decided not to hold the meet this year as it is refurbishing the site.
A local association, Billing Paragliding Association, has decided to hold the meet on its own.
A large number of dare-devils, especially from Russia, Britain and the US, have converged on the site for practising paragliding.
(Inputs from IANS)