Himachal BJP leader dies of Covid complications

Senior BJP Himachal Pradesh MLA and two-time former minister, Narinder Bragta died on Saturday due to post-Covid complications at the PGI Hospital in Chandigarh.

Shimla: Senior BJP Himachal Pradesh MLA and two-time former minister Narinder Bragta died on Saturday due to post-Covid complications at the PGI Hospital in Chandigarh, his family said.

Three-time legislator Bragta, a prominent apple grower, was currently the Chief Whip of the party in the Vidhan Sabha, with the rank of a Cabinet minister. He was 69.

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On Friday, Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur visited the hospital to enquire about his health. The MLA had been hospitalised for the past 15 days after contracting the virus on April 13.

Bragta remained Minister of State for Horticulture from 1998-2002 and Horticulture, Technical Education and Health Minister from 2007 to 2012.

He was re-elected in December 2017 from Jubbal-Kotkhai in Shimla district.

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Bragta was instrumental in installing anti-hail guns in the apple growing areas in Shimla district in 2010 under a Rs 3.29 crore Central government-funded project to protect the crop from hailstorms during the flowering and fruit setting season.

The Chief Minister having described him as a popular leader, spoke to his family members and conveyed his condolences.

IANS