DEHRADUN: A helicopter carrying five passengers and a pilot from Badrinath to Dehradun reportedly crashed near Joshimath in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district on Friday, triggering a search and rescue operation by the Indian Army, district administration and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF).
Authorities have yet to confirm the crash, as the location and the condition of those on board remains unknown.
The passengers have been identified as Prathapa, Arun, Shankar Gowda, Sudheer K. and H.S. Natraja. The pilot was Capt. Himanshu. No official information about casualties or the passengers’ condition was available at the time of reporting.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said a helicopter crash had been reported near Chhai village, close to Joshimath, and that a joint rescue operation was underway. He added that officials had been directed to airlift anyone seriously injured to a higher medical centre for treatment.
“District administration, the Disaster Management Department and the SDRF are jointly conducting the rescue operation. I am continuously monitoring the situation,” Dhami said in a post on X, adding that he was praying for the passengers’ safety.
The helicopter, operated by Trans Bharat Aviation Pvt. Ltd. under call sign VT-HCX, was flying to Sahastradhara in Dehradun. The Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA) said it took off at about 1.14 pm and lost communication while flying over the Joshimath valley. Its tracking system also stopped registering the aircraft.
A separate account said the helicopter had taken off from Badrinath at about 2.15 pm amid snowfall and went missing near the Hathi Parvat area, close to Joshimath. The accounts differ on the reported departure time. The Army is understood to have alerted the Chamoli district magistrate to a possible crash near Hathi Parvat, following which rescue teams were dispatched.
Teams from the Indian Army, the Chamoli district administration and the SDRF have been mobilised to search the area. The mountainous terrain around Joshimath and reported snowfall may complicate rescue efforts.
“As a precautionary measure, the entire fleet of Trans Bharat Aviation Pvt. Ltd. has been grounded,” UCADA said in its press note.
The helicopter was returning from Badrinath, where it had carried devotees, according to local reports. Officials had not confirmed whether the aircraft had crashed or established its last known location. The search operation was continuing.