DEHRADUN: In view of the record number of devotees arriving in Uttarakhand this yatra season and their increasing trend towards heli services, the government has decided to start a helicopter shuttle service directly from Dehradun to Badrinath and Kedarnath in the upcoming season.
The state civil aviation department has initiated preparations in this regard. Along with this, the government has also decided to build a substation for weather information in Kedarnath. A meeting was held on Saturday at the office at Sahasradhara Helidrome, which was chaired by Dilip Jawalkar, Civil Aviation Secretary, Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA).
Jawalkar said, “It has been resolved to start shuttle service from Sahasradhara helipad to Kedarnath and Badrinath. We have sought proposals from various companies and will study them in detail before finalising them.” Apart from inviting fresh tenders, UCADA has sought proposals from Heli companies regarding operations for the next season.