SHILLONG: In a bizarre development, Union Minister for External Affairs, Sushma Swaraj and her deputy, V.K. Singh, who flew all the way from Delhi to Guwahati, had to abort their trip to Shillong because the Indian Air Force helicopter that was supposed to fly them to Shillong from Guwahati could not take off, ostensibly because of bad weather.
For the bigwigs of Meghalaya who waited at the Shillong helipad to receive Swaraj, the cancellation of her visit was both a surprise and disappointment. Surprise because the weather in Shillong was clear and so too the weather at Guwahati according to reports. Disappointment because Meghalaya was all set to welcome Swaraj for this eventful function of inauguration of the Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) which has been a long-pending demand of the people.
Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, while speaking on the sidelines of the inauguration, said, “I am surprised how the Air Force could abort a flight so casually. I have flown in worse weather in the height of the monsoon. On September 23rd when I had to fly to Garo Hills to oversee the flood situation the weather was turbulent but the Pawan Hans helicopter took off and flew to its destination.”
Many in the audience who had waited to hear the redoubtable Swaraj said if the Minister had flown over two hours from Delhi to Guwahati she could have well driven up for another two hours to Shillong. They felt it was because Meghalaya is not on election mode hence it was not seen as important enough to be given attention.
Sangma said the date for the inaugural function was mutually agreed upon. But the aborted visit of Swaraj also underlines the fact that Meghalaya should have a full-fledged, functioning airport.
Sushma rushes to Delhi to attend
to ‘important commitments’
Commitments in Delhi seem to be more important for Union External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj than the inauguration of the long-pending Passport Seva Kendra in Shillong scheduled for Friday at 12pm.
Though bad weather was cited as the reason for the inability of the IAF Mi-17 chopper carrying Swaraj and her deputy V.K. Singh along with a special secretary to land in Shillong, other helicopters carried out two sorties – one at 9:30am and another at 1 pm – to the Upper Shillong helipad on Friday without any problems.
“The Pawan Hans helicopter operated two services on Friday without any hitch,” an official with the Meghalaya Transport department said.
The PRO of Eastern Air Command, Amit Mahajan, said that the IAF helicopter which took off from Guwahati carrying the dignitaries had to return midway due to fog.
“When the bad patch and fog was cleared, the helicopter was ready to take off again, but the Minister said that she had some commitment in Delhi,” the PRO revealed.
East Khasi Hills Deputy Commissioner Sanjay Goyal said that as per reports, the IAF helicopter took off from Guwahati at 10:28am on Friday and flew till Ri Bhoi, but it encountered fog and the pilot had to return the chopper to Guwahati.
When contacted, an official from the External Affairs Ministry in Delhi said over phone that it was due to the bad weather that the Minister had to return.
“Basically it was due to bad weather, and whatever drill is carried out by the IAF was followed,” the official said, while confirming that the Union Minister had official engagements in Delhi.
Questions are being raised on why the External Affairs Minister had agreed to such a short trip to Shillong to inaugurate the Passport Seva Kendra only to rush back to Delhi on the same day without understanding the North East terrain.
This was scheduled to be her first visit to Shillong after the BJP-led NDA Government came to power six months ago.
In the past, dignitaries had chosen to travel by road from Guwahati to Shillong whenever adverse weather conditions had affected the chopper service.
It is also intriguing that when the Pawan Hans helicopter carrying passengers could land in Upper Shillong on the same day, the IAF Mi-17 helicopter could not land due to bad weather, raising the call for up gradation of IAF choppers.
Swaraj’s failure to land in Shillong also gives impetus to the demand for a full-fledged airport, which has been pending for years now.
Connectivity has been and remains a major problem in land-locked Meghalaya and Friday’s events only helps to vindicate the fact that a proper airport was the need of the hour in the Hill State.
