Five killed as helicopter crashes in Uttarakhand

Dehradun, May 8 (IANS) Five tourists were killed and another was injured as a helicopter, in which they were travelling, crashed near Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi on Thursday.

The incident occurred around 9 a.m. near Gangnani when the private company helicopter was flying from Dehradun to Gangotri.

Those travelling on the plane were identified as Vinit Gupta, Arvind Agarwal, Vipin Agarwal, Pinki Agarwal, Rashmi, and Kishore Jadhav.

Police, Army Force, Disaster Management team, and ambulances have left for the spot near Uttarkashi.

The cause of the accident is yet to be identified.

After hearing about the accident, locals and police reached the spot and launched the rescue operation. State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Quick response teams, 108 ambulance vehicles, and other officials have rushed to the spot.

After getting the news of the tragic incident, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami expressed grief over the demise of those killed in the accident.

He also prayed for peace to the departed souls and strength to the bereaved families to bear the irreparable loss.

The Chief Minister also instructed the administration to provide all possible help to the injured and probe the incident.

In a post on social media platform X, he said: "Got the news of some casualties in a helicopter crash near Gangani in Uttarkashi. SDRF and district administration teams have immediately reached the spot for relief and rescue work." "May God grant peace to the departed souls and strength to the bereaved families to bear this immense sorrow. I have instructed the administration to provide all possible help to the injured and probe the accident. I am constantly in touch with the officials and monitoring every situation," his post read.

--IANS

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