Dehradun: In a tragic incident, a government official was killed by running rotor blades of a helicopter when he was taking a selfie near the chopper in Kedarnath on Sunday evening.
Jitendra Kumar Saini, the financial controller at the Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA), was on a tour to the shrine town to inspect preparations for Char Dham yatra.
According to DGCA officials, Agusta A119 helicopter (VT-RNK) operated by Kestrel Aviation was picking up an UCADA team from Kedarnath helipad when the incident took place.
Saini was boarding the helicopter with rotors running when he walked into the tail rotor and sustained fatal injuries. The incident happened at a Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam Ltd (GMVN) helipad at around 2.15 pm.
“The man came in the range of the rotor blades of a helicopter. He died on the spot,” said Rudraprayag SP Visakha Ashok.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has ordered an investigation into the incident, and they are coordinating with UCADA members to get more details into the incident.
The incident has sent shock waves through the region, and people are calling for stricter safety measures to be put in place to ensure that such incidents do not happen again. The authorities have assured the public that they are taking all necessary steps to ensure the safety of the pilgrims.
Kedarnath is set to open its doors to pilgrims on April 25, followed by Badrinath on April 27.
Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand government has stopped the registration for Char Dham yatra till the end of this month in view of continuing rain and snowfall in the mountainous region.