Dehradun: The first day of the Uttarakhand Assembly Session on Thursday began with paying tribute to Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat. Condolence messages were read in the house for deceased CDS, his wife and other defence personnel who were killed in chopper crash on Wednesday.
All the members of the legislative assembly paid floral tributes to the picture of CDS placed in the assembly gallery. Then the house was adjourned till 11 am on Friday.
The decision to extend the duration of the session by one day was taken by Business Advisory Committee of the Vidhan Sabha on Wednesday. Earlier it was scheduled only for two days but now it is extended till December 11.
General Bipin Rawat and 12 others including his wife Madhulika and 11 armed forces personnel- lost their lives in a helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu's Coonoor on Wednesday. Group Captain Varun Singh, who survived the crash, is presently undergoing treatment.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said that the death of Bipin Rawat was an irreparable loss and announced three days mourning in the state.
Dhami said that CDS used to worry a lot about the ex-servicemen and took steps for their welfare.
Interacting with media, Uttarakhand BJP President Madan Kaushik said, "the sudden demise of Bipin Rawat is a big loss not only for the country but also for Uttarakhand. General Bipin Rawat will always be remembered for his works. Hence, BJP is organizing condolence meetings at mandal level across the state."
Read: IAF Coonoor Crash: Bodies of Gen.Bipin Rawat, 12 others flown to Delhi from Sulur airbase
