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UPDATE: India’s Defence Chief, Wife, 11 Others Die in Helicopter Crash

Published

3 years ago

Dec 8, 2021.

UPDATE: India’s Defence Chief, Wife, 11 Others Die in Helicopter Crash

EKO HOT BLOG reports that General Bipin Rawat, India’s chief of defence staff, died in a helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu today.

According to Nilgiris Collector, he, his wife, and 11 others killed in the disaster.

Helicopter crash India’s Defence Chief

According to the Collector, one male member survived the collision. He is undergoing treatment for serious burns.

His identity, on the other hand, remains unknown.

The IAF Mi-17V5 helicopter was airborne from the Air Force base in Sulur for Wellington.

“With deep regret, it has now been ascertained that General Bipin Rawat, Mrs Madhulika Rawat and 11 other persons on board have died in the unfortunate accident,” the Indian Force said in a tweet.

Earlier the air force had tweeted the accident.

“An IAF Mi-17V5 helicopter, with CDS Gen Bipin Rawat on board, met with an accident today near Coonoor, Tamil Nadu.

“An Inquiry has been ordered to determine the reason of the crash,” said the Indian Air Force.

The developments have been communicated to Prime Minister Narendra Modi by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.

Singh is expected to update Parliament on the event tomorrow, according to sources.

The incident happened in the Nilgiris, not long after the Mi-series helicopter took off from the army base at Sulur.

Rawat, 63, was appointed as the country’s first Chief of Defence Staff on January 1, 2019.

In one of the most important reorganizations in the Defence Ministry in decades, he was chosen as the head of the newly established Department of Military Affairs.

He was the Chief of the Army for three years before becoming the CDS.

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