Tripura governor’s helicopter makes emergency landing

AGARTALA: Tripura governor Padmanabha Balakrishna Acharya’s chopper made an emergency landing at a helipad in Kalayanpur on Tuesday owing to bad weather. Kalayanpur is about 40 km north of Agartala.
According to Agartala airport director S D Barman, a Thumby aviation operated chartered copter, with the governor and his family in it, took off from Dimapur and halted at Imphal airport to refuel.
It was operated under the visual flight rules (VFR). “VFR never permits a helicopter to fly at high altitudes. According to the rules, an aircraft can only fly at a low height from where the ground is properly visible. But, thunder clouds hung low over Agartala and the pilot could not see anything on the surface,” Barman told TOI.
At Kalayanpur, the pilot noticed a helipad on the Bairagipara Junior Basic School premises and made an emergency landing. A little later, local police escorted Acharya to the Dak Bungalow. The chopper flew to Agartala airport around 4.30 pm following instructions from the Air Traffic Control (ATC) Agartala, Barman added.
From Dak Bungalow, the governor headed towards Agartala via road, said Khowai SP Rathi Ranjan Debnath.
Nagaland governor Padmanabha Balakrishna Acharya was sworn in as the governor of Tripura on July 21. On Tuesday, he was travelling to Agartala, as the monsoon session of Tripura assembly is scheduled to begin on August 29.
Acharya was an uninvited guest at Bairagipara school. The chopper’s sudden landing on its premises caught the teachers and students in a fit of amusement.
The curious pupils and their mentors crowded around the chopper to witness Acharya and his wife de-boarding the plane. But no among those gathered could recognize him. The governor introduced himself to the young, inquisitive souls.
They were overwhelmed to see him, said Tapan Purkasthya, a telephone operator. “The teachers welcomed Acharya and his wife to a classroom and offered them khichudi,” added Purkasthya.
Acharya was moved by the warmth showered on him by the students and even tasted the meal. They also handed him a note in Bengali charting their demands. They expressed the basic problems plaguing the school which include lack of infrastructure, proper toilet facilities and adequate teachers.