In an tragic accident helicopter carrying the seven devotees crashed near Kedarnath Shrine in Uttarakhand on early Sunday, June 15. All seven on board people got killed in the accident. Rudraprayag District Disaster Management Officer Nandan Singh Rajwar told the news agency PTI that the accident took place above the forests of Gaurikund amid poor visibility due to bad weather. The dead included six pilgrims and the pilot. Rajveer Singh is an Army veteran from Jaipur with about 15 years of service, and had retired as a Lieutenant Colonel last year.
Rajveer Singh Chauhan was among the seven killed after the helicopter carrying Char Dham yatra pilgrims from Kedarnath crashed near Gaurikund in Rudraprayag district. His mortal remains are brought to rajasthan and his wife an Army officer herself led the procession in uniform for the funeral while carrying his portrait, giving a teary-eyed goodbye.
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About The Crash
The helicopter took off from Kedarnath for Guptkashi around 5:30 am and crashed soon after. Sources said the chopper belonging to Aryan Aviation Pvt Ltd crashed between Gaurikund and Trijuginarayan in Kedarghati and caught fire. "At around 5:30 AM, we got the information that a helicopter, which was going from Shri Kedarnath Dham to Guptkashi, could not be located. After some time, it was learnt that it had crashed near Gaurikund. Rescue operation is underway, SDRF teams have reached the spot. A total of 6 passengers and one pilot were on board the helicopter," said Sonika, CEO of Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA).
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said in a post on X that a helicopter has crashed and the State Disaster Response Force and other agencies are engaged in relief and rescue operations. "SDRF and NDRF teams have reached the spot, and relief and rescue operations have been started. The rescue operation remains challenging as the incident spot is in a difficult and inaccessible forest area," said SDRF. Nodal Officer (Heli/Tourism), Rahul Chaubey, said, "The Aryan Aviation helicopter crashed while returning from Kedarnath. It was carrying five passengers, including a 23-month-old child, and pilot Rajeev. Due to poor visibility, the pilot attempted to steer the helicopter away from the valley, but it crashed above Gaurikund. NDRF and SDRF teams have been deployed at the site for rescue and investigation operations."