In the wake of the Yeti Airlines Flight ATR-72 crash the Nepal government declared a day of national mourning tomorrow. The government has also announced that a five-member committee will be formed to investigate the crash.
Earlier the Prime Minister of Nepal Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Nepal Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane was visiting Pokhara after the crash but the visit now stands cancelled according to Dahal's Chief Personal Secretary Ramesh Malla.
Until now, the Civil Aviation Authority confirmed the deaths of 29 individuals in the incident. This flight carried 68 passengers including five Indians and four crew members and there are operations underway for rescuing the victims, according to a tweet from the Embassy of India Kathmandu.
Regarding the plane crash, the Indian Embassy Kathmandu embassy authorities are continuously in contact with the local authorities. Taking it to Twitter the Ambassador of Nepal to India Shankar P Sharma regarding the incident tweeted "We are deeply saddened by the crash of a plane carrying 72 passengers and crew members, including some Indians in Pokhara. We express our heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased. Our thoughts and prayers at this time are with all those affected by this tragedy."
In addition, the government of Nepal summoned an emergency meeting of the airport authorities after the plane crash. The Embassy of India Kathmandu has released helpline numbers for the victims of the crash Diwakar Sharma: +977-9851107021 for Kathmandu and Lt Col Shashank Tripathi: +977-9856037699 for the Pokhara region.
Images and videos of the crash posted on social media platforms showed plumes of smoke billowing out of the crash site. Further the Prime Minister directed Home Ministry, security personnel and all the government agencies to carry out immediate rescue and relief operations.
Moreover, Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia also condoled the loss of lives in the plane crash in Nepal's Pokhara. The Scindia tweeted "The loss of lives in a tragic plane crash in Nepal is extremely unfortunate. My thoughts and prayers are with the families of the bereaved. Om Shanti,".
Previously, a deadly air crash took place in Nepal in May last year in which 4 Indians died. A Tara Air 9 NAET twin-engine aircraft crashed in Kowang village of the Mustang district hours after it went missing in the mountainous district after taking off from Pokhara city.
Mustang is one of the mountainous and fifth-largest districts of the Himalayan nation, which hosts the pilgrimage to Muktinath Temple. The district, also known as 'Land beyond the Himalayas', is located in the Kali Gandaki valley of the Himalayan region of Western Nepal.
The world's deepest gorge that goes down three miles vertically between Dhaulagiri and Annapurna mountains runs through this district.
Following the crash, an emergency mock drill on a plane crash rescue operation has been conducted at Tribhuwan International Airport in the Nepali capital Kathmandu on Wednesday afternoon.
According to the rules of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), every internationally recognized airport should conduct a 'full-scale emergency exercise' every two years.
( With inputs from ANI )
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