KOLKATA: Acloud of grief covered the hills of West Bengal as news of Havildar Satpal Rai’s death came in. The 41-year-old was the personal security officer of the CDS. “He told me he was going to Tamil Nadu. I lost my husband. But I am proud that he died while performing duty,’’ said Rai’s widow Mandira.
Rai’s son Bikkal, who is also in the Indian Army and presently based in Delhi, said his father talked to him on a video call hours before boarding the ill-fated helicopter.
Mandira said her late husband had come home for Diwali. “He was supposed to come home in April again and had promised us a vacation to some place,” she said.
Expressing condolences, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote to Rai’s mother. “I sincerely express my deepest condolence to the unfortunate and sudden demise of Late Havildar Satpal Rai due to the helicopter crash at Coonoor, at the age of only 40 years,” an official statement quoted Banerjee as saying.
The chief minister said Rai’s sacrifice for the country will never be forgotten. “The demise of this brave son of the hills is an irreparable loss. We will always remember him,” her message said.