On the night of 05
February 2017, a head-on collision between a pickup van and a tractor near
Ambikapur in the naxal affected Surguja district in Chhattisgarh left five
passengers dead and others critically injured. Around midnight, IG Sarguja approached
Task
Force Commander of IAF’s Anti Naxal Task Force (ANTF) based at Raipur, to
airlift the casualties which was approved by HQ, Central Air Command.
In the meantime, the
pilots and ground staff of the Task Force had swung into action to get the
Raipur civil airfield opened. One Mi-17V5 helicopter was readied, while another
helicopter was kept on standby. Flying under the cover of darkness using the
Night Vision Goggles (NVG) the pilots landed at Ambikapur. In view of the naxal
threat, the state police provided the necessary sanitization and security cover
around the landing area. Two critically injured passengers, one a child of
about 13 years, and a lady along with a team of local doctor were taken on
board and evacuated to Raipur before sunrise on 06 February, where they were
promptly put into ambulances for civil hospital.
AB/BRB
