Mortal remains of General Bipin Rawat and others arrived at Palam airport in Delhi. (Express photo Anil Sharma)General Bipin Rawat Chopper Crash Highlights: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and NSA Ajit Doval paid their respects to CDS Bipin Rawat and other Armed Forces personnel, who were killed in the chopper crash in Tamil Nadu’s Coonoor, at around 9 PM today at the Palam airbase in New Delhi. The three services chiefs were also present.
Heart-wrenching scenes were seen at the airport as 13 caskets were placed inside a hangar in presence of their family members. Only three of the 13 bodies have been identified so far — Gen Rawat and his wife, Madhulika Rawat, and Brigadier LS Lidder. Army officials said the bodies of those identified will be released to families for last rites.
Meanwhile, Group Captain Varun Singh, decorated with the Shaurya Chakra on Independence Day this year, who was the lone survivor of the crash, is in critical condition and was airlifted to the Command Hospital in Bangalore for treatment.
The three service chiefs - Army Chief Gen MM Naravane, Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar & IAF chief Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari pay last respects to CDS Gen Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat and other 11 Armed Forces personnel who lost their lives in military chopper crash yesterday.
Some more visuals from Delhi's Palam airport, where mortal remains of CDS Gen Bipin Rawat, his wife Madulika Rawat and 11 others who lost their lives in a military chopper crash, have been placed.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh pays last respects to CDS General Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat and other 11 Armed Forces personnel who lost their lives in the chopper crash yesterday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi pays tribute to those killed in the Tamil Nadu chopper crash yesterday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived at the Palam airbase, where mortal remains of CDS Gen Bipin Rawat, his wife Madulika Rawat and 11 others who lost their lives in a military chopper crash, have been placed. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and NSA Ajit Doval are also present.
After arriving at the Palam airbase, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met with families of CDS General Bipin Rawat and other Armed Forces personnel, who lost their lives in the Tamil Nadu chopper crash on Wednesday.
NSA Ajit Doval is also present at the Palam airbase.
The mortal remains of CDS General Bipin Rawat, his wife Madulika Rawat and 11 others, who lost their lives in the Tamil Nadu chopper crash yesterday, placed at Palam airbase.
The mortal remains of Madhulika Rawat, president of the Army Wives Welfare Association and wife of late CDS General Bipin Rawat, have been kept at the Palam airbase in New Delhi.
General Rawat's family members also paid their tribute.
The mortal remains of General Bipin Rawat, who lost his life in the Tamil Nadu chopper crash Thursday, being brought out of IAF aircraft that arrived at Palam airbase from Sulur.
The IAF aircraft carrying mortal remains of General Bipin Rawat, others arrived in New Delhi a short while ago.
Here's what we know about some of the Armed Force personnel who were killed in the crash
Havildar Satpal Rai
5/11 GR
-Enrolled in March 2002
-Served in Siachen, Naushera, Nagaland, Manipur
-Son serving in the same unit for the last one year.
Lt Col Harjinder Singh
2/11 GR
-DOB - 17 April 1978.
-Staff Officer to CDS.
-Commissioned- September 2001 from OTA, Chennai
-Instructor at IMA, Dehradun.
-Served in North East along LAC, LC in J&K
-Served in Sikkim Scouts
-Staff Officer in a Corps HQ.
-Served in AEC from 2004 to 2014
-Instructor at IMA and Served in High Altitude Area.
Brig LS Lidder
-DOB - 26 Jun 1969
-Commissioned to JAKRIF in Dec 1990
-DA to CDS since Jan 2021
-Approved to Maj Gen rank (was due to take over a Division)
-Commanded Brigade in Northern Borders
-Instructor at NDA
-CO 2 JAKRIF in UN in Congo
-DA at Kazakhstan
-Director at Military Operations Directorate
Naik Gursevak Singh
9 PARA (SF)
-Enrolled in March 2004
-Served in Ladakh, J&K (Poonch-Rajouri, South & North Kashmir)
-Demolition specialist and leadership course - Best Student
-Expert in Unarmed Combat and Close Quarter Battle.
Lance Naik Vivek Kumar
1 PARA SF
-Enrolled in December 2012
-Served in J&K (South & North Kashmir - Sino Indian border ahead of Spiti
-Specialist in Combat Freefall, Communication Expert and Excellent in Unarmed Combat
Lance Naik Jitender Kumar
3 PARA (SF)
-Enrolled in March 2011
-Served in the Desert sector along Indo-Pak border, Sino-Indian border near Pithoragarh and J&K
-Expert Sniper and specialist in Communications.
Lance Naik B Sai Teja
11 PARA (SF)
-Enrolled in Jun 2013
-Served in Super High Altitude in Arunachal along with the Sino-Indian border and Counter-Terrorist operations in Manipur and Nagaland.
-Expert in Mixed Martial Arts, Unarmed Combat, Communications and Electronic Warfare.
The unidentified bodies will be kept at the mortuary of Army Base Hospital in New Delhi till positive identification is done. The Army said that appropriate military funerals of all deceased are being planned and coordinated in close consultation with close family members.
Only three out of 13 bodies have been identified so far- General Bipin Rawat, Madhulika Rawat and Brigadier LS Lidder. Their mortal remains will be released to the families for last rites, the Army said.
The Indian Airforce aircraft carrying mortal remains of those killed in the Coonoor crash is expected to arrive at Palam airbase by 7.40 PM. The tribute ceremony will begin at around 8.30 PM.
The tribute ceremony will begin at around 8.30 PM at New Delhi's Palam airbase. President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Defence Secretary, Chief of Air, Army and Navy Staff will be laying wreaths.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lead tributes to Bipin Rawat and others at Palam airport. Here are some visuals from the site
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday called on President Ram Nath Kovind and briefed him about the chopper crash near Coonoor that killed Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika and 11 armed forces personnel. The President is the Supreme Commander of the armed forces. Official sources said Singh apprised President Kovind about the accident as well as the situation arising out of it. (PTI)
Indian Air Force’s Group Captain Varun Singh, the lone survivor of the Coonoor military chopper crash, has been shifted to Command Hospital, Bengaluru for further treatment.