NEW DELHI, DEC 9
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh paid their last respect to Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika and 11 other defence personnel, who were killed in a helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu, at Palam Airbase in Delhi on Thursday night.
Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhatt, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and chiefs of Army, Air Force and Navy also paid tribute to the deceased.
Modi later met the family members of the CDS and others and expressed his condolences.
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The mortal remains of General Rawat and others were flown to Delhi from Sulur airbase in Tamil Nadu in a special military plane in the evening. Army said civilians can pay tribute to General Rawat between 11 am and 12.30 pm on Friday at the CDS’s Karaj Marg residence.
“Military personnel can pay respects between 1230-1330 hours. Thereafter, the mortal remains will be taken in a gun carriage for the funeral in Delhi Cantt Brar Square,” the Army said.
The last rites will be held in Delhi Cantonment at 9.15 pm with full military honours.
Rawat was travelling to the Defence Staff College in Wellington from the Indian Air Force base in Sulur near Coimbatore when the Mi-17V5 helicopter crashed near Coonoor around noon on Wednesday.
Group Captain Varun Singh, the only survivor in the accident, is currently under treatment at the Military Hospital, Wellington.
Meanwhile, the Army said the positive identification of only three mortal remains has been possible as of now, including General Rawat, Madhulika Rawat and Brigadier LS Liddar.
The process for positive identification of remaining mortal remains continues, it said.
