A helicopter carrying India’s defence chief General Bipin Rawat has crashed in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, killing at least four people, according to media reports.
India’s public broadcaster Prasar Bharati said four people were killed and three others were injured and taken to a hospital. There was no official confirmation of the report.
“An IAF Mi-17V5 helicopter, with CDS Gen Bipin Rawat on board, met with an accident today near Coonoor, Tamil Nadu,” the Indian Air Force said on Twitter on Wednesday, but did not say whether Rawat, 63, was injured in the accident.Defence Minister Rajnath Singh was expected to make a statement on the incident in Parliament later on Wednesday.
There was no immediate confirmation of the number of people on the helicopter. News channels showed a flight manifest that displayed the names of nine passengers, including Rawat’s wife and other senior defence officials.The Press Trust of India news agency said the helicopter was on its way from an Air Force base to the Defence Services Staff College when it crashed near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu.
Videos broadcast on Indian news channels showed the helicopter in flames as locals tried to douse it in a densely forested area near the college.
#WATCH | Latest visuals from the spot (between Coimbatore and Sulur) where a military chopper crashed in Tamil Nadu. CDS Gen Bipin Rawat, his staff and some family members were in the chopper.
(Video Source: Locals involved in search and rescue operation) pic.twitter.com/YkBVlzsk1J
— ANI (@ANI) December 8, 2021
Rawat is India’s first chief of defence staff, a position the Indian government established in 2019 and which he assumed last year after retiring as army chief. He is seen as close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and is an adviser to the defence ministry.
Rawat comes from a military family with several generations having served in the Indian armed forces.
The general, who has four decades of service behind him, has commanded forces in Indian-administered Kashmir and along the Line of Actual Control bordering China.Hoping for the safety of CDS General Bipin Rawat, his wife and others onboard the chopper.
Prayers for speedy recovery.
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) December 8, 2021
He is credited with reducing armed conflicts on India’s northeastern frontier and supervised a cross-border counterinsurgency operation into neighbouring Myanmar.
The Indian Air Force says an inquiry into the accident is under way.-Aljazeera
