In Nepal, thirteen Indians are among the fifteen killed in the air crash today near Jomsom the district headquarters of Mustang district.
The private airlines of Agni Air 9 N AIG carrying eighteen passengers and three crew was heading towards Jomsom from Pokhara. The dead include the pilot and co-pilot.
According to airport authorities, six of the injured have been send to Pokhara and are admitted to hospital which include two Danish passengers and the airhostess. The Indians were headed for Muktinath shrine which is a popular pilgrimage site for both Hindus and Buddhists.
The dornier plane which took off from Pokhara airport at about 9.30 am local time in clear weather crashed fifteen minutes later on a cliff near Jomsom airport, while the exact cause of the crash is not yet known , Reports said that the plane could not land due to technical glitch and was returning to Pokhara when the front part of the plane hit a cliff.
However the rescue work was swift as the barracks of the Nepal Army was nearby. The last air crash took place on September 25th last year in Kathmandu where ten Indians were among the eighteen killed while they were on mountain flight to view Mount Everest and the Himalayas range.
The Indian Embassy in Kathmandu has released the name of the three Indians who were injured in the plane crash in Jomsom today.
They are Tirumala Kidambi Sreekanth, nine year old Tirumala Kidambi Sreevardhini and six year old Tirumala Kidambi Sreepada who were among the six who were rescued in the crash that has claimed fifteen lives including thirteen Indians. The injured are undergoing treatment at Manipal hospital in Pokhara.
A Nepal Army chopper has left for Jomsom to bring the mortal remains of the deceased to Kathmandu.
In a statement, the Embassy of India has expressed its profound grief on the death and injury to the passengers and crew of the aircraft.
In has stated that it is maintaining close contact with Nepalese authorities, who have extended the full cooperation in carrying out the search and relief operation at the site of the crash.
A control room / information centre has been set up in the Indian Embassy, Kathmandu. Following are the phone numbers of the information centre
00-977-1-4423702
00-977-1-4410900, extn.4109
00-977-1-4411699, extn.4109
