Five Indians on ill-fated Nepal plane identified

The Nepalese passenger plane, a twin-engine ATR 72 aircraft operated by Yeti Airlines - carrying 72 people, including 10 foreigners, crashed into a river gorge while landing at the airport in Pokhara.

Hyderabad:There were at least five Indians among the 15 foreign passengers on board the ill-fated aircraft that crashed in Nepal on Sunday morning. Though 67 bodies have been recovered from the site, the fate of the Indian passengers is not known yet.

They have been identified as Abhisekh Kushwaha, Bishal Sharma, Anil Kumar Rajbhar, Sonu Jaiswal and Sanjaya Jaiswal, a Yeti Airlines official said. "An ATR-72 plane of Yeti Airlines crashed today near the Pokhara Airport while flying from Kathmandu. According to the info provided by Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, 5 Indians were travelling on this flight. Rescue operations are underway," the Indian mission tweeted.

The embassy is in touch with local authorities and is monitoring the situation, it said. According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), Yeti Airlines' 9N-ANC ATR-72 aircraft took off from Kathmandu's Tribhuvan International Airport at 10:33 am and crashed at the Pokhara airport at around 11 am. Pokhara is a major tourist destination in the Himalayan nation. While attempting to land at the Pokhara airport, the aircraft crashed on the bank of the Seti River between the old airport and the new airport.

Images and videos of the crash posted on social media platforms showed plumes of smoke billowing out of the crash site. Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda held an emergency meeting of the Cabinet soon after the crash. He instructed security personnel and all government agencies to carry out effective rescue operations.

Soon after the meeting, the Prime Minister left for Tribhuvan International Airport to understand the details of the accident. Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya M. Scindia expressed deep concern and grief over the unfortunate incident. The Minister tweeted, "The loss of lives in a tragic plane crash in Nepal is extremely unfortunate. My thoughts & prayers are with the families of the bereaved."

The Indian Embassy in Kathmandu issued a statement assuring Indian nationals that they are in touch with local authorities and monitoring the situation. They have also issued some helplines.