Close shave for Devendra Fadnavis, Ajit Pawar as chopper flying duo faces adverse weather

Industries Minister Uday Samant too was on board the fixed-wing aircraft. The trio had gone to Gadchiroli for the foundation stone laying ceremony of the Rs 10,000 crore an integrated steel project

Mumbai: Deputy Chief Ministers Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar had a close shave while flying from Nagpur to Gadchiroli as the helicopter faced inclement weather and poor visibility conditions.

Industries Minister Uday Samant too was on board the fixed-wing aircraft.

However, the pilot flew skilfully and managed to ensure a safe-landing.

The trio had gone to Gadchiroli for the foundation stone laying ceremony of the Rs 10,000 crore an integrated steel project in Aheri tehsil of the Gadchiroli district of the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra.

Located along the Chhattisgarh and Telangana state boundaries, Gadchiroli is a Naxalite-infested district.

The event was very significant and hence Fadnavis, who is also the Home Minister and BJP’s pointsperson in Maharashtra, Pawar, the Finance Minister and NCP President and Samant, a close aide of Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, went for the event.

Addressing the foundation laying ceremony, Pawar narrated the incident.

“After we took off from Nagpur, we experienced bad weather…there were clouds all around. I was a bit restless. However, Fadnavis was quite calm and was chatting with me. I was getting restless and worried. However, Fadnavis told me not to worry saying that he had met with six accidents earlier and escaped safely. He told me nothing will happen and that all will be safe,” he said.

“As we were flying, Samant told me to watch out for the landing site. After looking at it from the window, I heaved a sigh of relief and the chopper landed safely,” he said.