Jaipur Pilot Who Recently Became Father Of 4-month-old Twins Killed In Kedarnath Chopper Crash

Jaipur: The 37-year-old pilot from Jaipur, who tragically lost his life in the chopper crash near Gaurikund on Sunday, had returned to duty just 20 days ago after spending time with his family and his four-month-old twin children. Seven people were killed in the Kedarnath Chopper crash. This is the fifth major accident in the last six weeks in Uttarakhand.

Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) Rajveer Singh Chauhan had been planning to host a traditional Rajasthani ceremony for his newborns on June 30, his father, Govind Chauhan, shared.

“He had become a father after 14 years of marriage. We have been planning for a jalwa pujan (a Rajasthani ceremony for newborns) for Rajveer’s four-month-old twin kids. But, everything is over now,” he added, as repored by Hindustan Times.

At least seven people, including retired Lt Colonel Rajveer Singh Chauhan, lost their lives when a chopper en route from Kedarnath to Guptkashi crashed in Uttarakhand’s Rudraprayag district on Saturday morning.

Lt Col (Retired) Rajveer Singh Chauhan, a former Indian Air Force (IAF) captain, had retired a year ago after 14 years of service. In October, he joined a private helicopter service company based in Dehradun.

Govind shared that he received a call from Rajveer’s colleague, Lieutenant VK Singh, who informed him that the chopper had crashed just minutes before landing on Saturday morning. “Rajveer had returned to Dehradun only 20 days ago after a short vacation at home. We never imagined that would be the last time we saw him,” he said.

Chief minister Bhajan Lal Sharma said, “The news of the death of a pilot from Rajasthan and other devotees due to a helicopter crash in Kedarnath is extremely disheartening. May God grant a place to the departed souls in his shelter and give strength to the bereaved family to bear this blow.”

Youth Minister Colonel Rajyavardhan Singh also wrote on X, “The untimely death of Jaipur’s Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) Rajveer Singh Chauhan ji, the pilot in the helicopter crash while going to Kedarnath, is extremely painful. The entire state is with the Chauhan family in this hour of grief.”

The other six victims have been identified as Rajkumar Suresh Jaiswal (41), Shradha Rajkumar Jaiswal (35) and their 23-month-old child Kashi, all residents of Maharashtra; Vikram (46) from Rudraprayag; and Vinod Dev (66) along with Tusti Singh (29) both from Bijnor in Uttar Pradesh.

Notably, helicopter crashes or emergency landings are occurring at an alarming frequency on the Chardham yatra route in Uttarakhand. The Chardham yatra involves Kedarnath, Badrinath, Yamunotri and Gangotri shrines. On June 7, a helicopter going to Kedarnath had to make an emergency landing on the road due to a technical fault soon after take-off in which the pilot was injured but the five devotees on board were rescued safely.

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