Kolkata, Sep 8 (IANS) West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari’s helicopter was forced to abandon its landing at Kalimpong on Tuesday afternoon due to low visibility and adverse weather conditions across the north Bengal hills.
The pilot made two unsuccessful landing attempts over the Kalimpong airspace as heavy fog hampered visual navigation, prompting the crew to turn the aircraft back toward Siliguri.
Adhikari arrived at Bagdogra airport near Siliguri by flight before taking a helicopter to Kalimpong, where he was scheduled to attend a programme. However, when the chopper reached the Kalimpong area, the pilot found visibility too poor to proceed with the landing.
The helicopter remained in the area for some time and made two attempts to land, but both proved unsuccessful. The pilot subsequently decided to return to Siliguri as weather conditions continued to remain unfavourable.
After his return, Adhikari was expected to address the Kalimpong programme virtually from Siliguri. The event itself was scheduled to proceed as planned, with his physical presence being the only change to the programme.
Darjeeling BJP MP Raju Bista said a temporary helipad had been prepared at Kalimpong for the Chief Minister’s arrival. He said the heavy fog prevented the helicopter from landing and confirmed that Adhikari would participate in the event virtually from Siliguri.
The Chief Minister was scheduled to attend a second engagement in Siliguri. A state government official said Adhikari would chair an administrative review meeting at Uttar Kanya, the state government’s administrative centre for North Bengal.
The incident comes less than a month after another weather-related disruption involving the Chief Minister’s helicopter.
On August 11, the helicopter carrying Adhikari from Kolkata to Keshpur in West Midnapore district was forced to make an emergency landing at Kolaghat in East Midnapore because of bad weather.
Adhikari later travelled by road from Kolaghat to Keshpur to attend his scheduled engagements.
The repeated weather-related disruptions highlight the difficulties faced by air travel in the hilly areas of North Bengal, where fog and rapidly changing weather conditions can affect helicopter operations and visibility.
Officials said the decision to return to Siliguri was taken as a safety measure after landing attempts could not be completed safely.
–IANS
src/snj/skp
