A Char Dham pilgrimage turned tragic for five friends from Bengaluru after the helicopter carrying them crashed near Joshimath in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district on Friday, October 30. All six people on board, including the pilot, were killed in the accident.
The deceased passengers were identified as Bengaluru residents Arun Salunke, H S Nataraj, Prathap Ningraju, Sudheer K and Shankar Gowda. The helicopter pilot was identified as Captain Himanshu Sabharwal, a resident of Delhi.
According to reports, the five friends had embarked on their Char Dham pilgrimage three days before the accident and were expected to return to Bengaluru on Friday evening. Their families were waiting for them when news of the helicopter crash arrived.
Bengaluru police inspector among victims
Among those killed was 44-year-old Arun Salunke, an inspector with Bengaluru Police's Central Crime Branch (CCB). A 2007-batch Karnataka Police officer, Salunke had previously served at Halasuru police station and in the Criminal Investigation Department before joining the CCB.
His neighbours remembered him as a friendly person who maintained good relations with people in his apartment building.
The other victims included H S Nataraj, 51, who headed the Vidya Bharati educational institution; Prathap Ningraju, 41, who worked as a civil contractor; Sudheer K, 49; and advocate Shankar Gowda, 39.
Prathap, who had moved to Bengaluru around 15 years ago, lived in Thanisandra with his wife and two sons. His family had been expecting him to return home on Friday evening.
Friend recalls last conversation before helicopter crash
In a heartbreaking account, Nagesh, a childhood friend of Nataraj, recalled speaking to him shortly before the accident.
Nataraj had called him at around 11 am on Friday from inside the helicopter and reportedly told him that the passengers were waiting for the weather to clear. The pilot had informed them that thick fog and poor visibility were affecting the flight.
Nataraj also spoke about the extremely cold weather conditions in the region. The conversation turned out to be their last.
How did the Badrinath helicopter crash happen?
The helicopter, operated by Trans Bharat Aviation, was flying from Badrinath to Sahastradhara helipad in Dehradun. It took off at approximately 1.14 pm and lost communication while passing through the Joshimath valley.
The aircraft subsequently crashed into a hillside near Marwari Bridge and the JP Power House area around 2.20 pm.
Rescue teams from the Chamoli district administration, police, State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police were deployed to the accident site. Chamoli Superintendent of Police Surjit Singh Panwar confirmed that all six people on board had died.
Karnataka government expresses condolences
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah expressed grief over the deaths and said the state government was coordinating with Uttarakhand authorities to bring the mortal remains of the victims back to Karnataka.
Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar and state minister Priyank Kharge also expressed condolences to the bereaved families.
The Uttarakhand authorities had grounded the entire fleet of Trans Bharat Aviation as a precautionary measure following the accident.
