CEC Rajiv Kumar thanks Uttarakhand villagers, ITBP for emergency help

Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar, who was stranded in a remote Uttarakhand village for 17 hours after his chopper made an emergency landing there, has expressed gratitude to the villagers and the ITBP for their hospitality. The top election official was en route to Milam to visit remote polling stations in the Pithoragarh region on Wednesday afternoon when his chopper with the pilot and two others on board was forced to make the emergency landing at Ralam village, around 42 km from Munsiyari, due to dense cloud and poor visibility. In a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer of the state BVRCC Purushottam, Kumar praised the residents of Ralam village, saying, "All the young angels became synonymous with the high ideals of humanity and made this day an unforgettable memory for the sake of saving the lives of all of us." He expressed confidence that the administration will adopt this example of the participation of local residents in disaster management as a policy and will ...