Calcutta: Unavailability of a helicopter grounded chief minister Nitish Kumar’s second lap of the Sankalp Yatra on Tuesday.
Choppers, especially in absence of well-maintained airstrips for smooth operations of smaller aircraft, have turned out to be the most convenient mode of transport for campaign in the run-up to the general elections.
While RJD chief Lalu Prasad started using a chopper for the election rallies from last week, Nitish could not start his Yatra. Sources said the JD(U) had ordered two helicopters but the aviation firm concerned could not supply any of these because of heavy demand for the flying machines. The Yatra has been postponed by a few days till the choppers land in Patna.
The national parties have been using choppers for quite long. “Helicopters allow us to cover more places in less time. We can address eight to nine public meetings on a single day through helicopters. The BJP would also hire three or four choppers for the campaigns this season,” said BJP state president Mangal Pandey.
Aviation experts claim that the number of helicopters that can be seen at Patna airport during the peak campaigning period over the next few weeks can be anywhere between 15 and 20. Political parties are making huge spending in hiring the choppers.
12/03/14 Piyush Kumar Tripathi/The Telegarph
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Choppers, especially in absence of well-maintained airstrips for smooth operations of smaller aircraft, have turned out to be the most convenient mode of transport for campaign in the run-up to the general elections.
While RJD chief Lalu Prasad started using a chopper for the election rallies from last week, Nitish could not start his Yatra. Sources said the JD(U) had ordered two helicopters but the aviation firm concerned could not supply any of these because of heavy demand for the flying machines. The Yatra has been postponed by a few days till the choppers land in Patna.
The national parties have been using choppers for quite long. “Helicopters allow us to cover more places in less time. We can address eight to nine public meetings on a single day through helicopters. The BJP would also hire three or four choppers for the campaigns this season,” said BJP state president Mangal Pandey.
Aviation experts claim that the number of helicopters that can be seen at Patna airport during the peak campaigning period over the next few weeks can be anywhere between 15 and 20. Political parties are making huge spending in hiring the choppers.
12/03/14 Piyush Kumar Tripathi/The Telegarph
