KATHMANDU, Nepal, Feb 28 (NNN-AGENCIES) – The Nepali government and people, have been mourning the victims of Wednesday’s helicopter crash, which raised concerns over the country’s civil aviation security and the safety of passengers.
On Wednesday, all seven passengers on board were killed, including Nepal’s Tourism and Civil Aviation Minister, Rabindra Adhikari, in the helicopter crash.
Prime Minister K.P Sharma Oli presided over an emergency cabinet meeting on Wednesday, deciding to honour Adhikari with state funeral, according to Home Minister, Ram Bahadur Thapa.
The government observed national day of mourning today (Thursday), for the chopper crash victims, and the government decided to fly the national flag at half mast, in government offices and Nepali diplomatic missions abroad, on Friday (tomorrow).
The bodies of the six deaths will be brought to Nepal’s Capital, Kathmandu, Friday and will be handed over to their families, according to authorities.
“Today, the tourism industry has faced a huge loss, as it lost a young and energetic leader, who had both vision and willingness to bring improvements in this industry. This is really sad news for us,” tourism entrepreneur, CN Pandey said, while expressing sorrow over the demise of the tourism minister.
He said, poor weather is often one of the major reasons behind plane crashes in Nepal. “Wednesday’s incident might have happened due to the same reason.”
Pandey, who is also the Chairperson of Nepal Association of Tour and Travel Agents (NATTA), said, the government should enforce regulatory measures to prevent such incidents in future.
This was the latest incident of a plane crash in the Himalayan nation. Officials at the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) blamed bad weather and difficult terrain behind the chopper crash.
Experts said the lack of sufficient resources and facilities, problematic geographical locations and bad weather are the main causes for plane crashes.
Since 1949, when the first aircraft landed in Nepal, there have been over 100 different crashes, involving both air planes and helicopters, according to officials.– NNN-AGENCIES
