Seven dead after helicopter carrying Hindu pilgrims crashes in India

A helicopter carrying Hindu pilgrims has crashed in India, killing seven people.

In the early hours of this morning (Sunday, June 15), a helicopter carrying Hindu pilgrims travelling to Guptkashi in the Himalayas crashed within moments after take off.

The aircraft departed from Kedarnath temple town on what should have been a 10-minute journey but crashed minutes later at around 5.20am in Uttarakhand, several miles from the pilgrimage route.

Traffic ground control reportedly lost contact with the helicopter as it traversed near the mountainous region of Gaurikund.

Tragically, local reports confirm seven people have died, including a child and the pilot.

The burning wreckage and debris of the helicopter has also been found.

The burning debris from the crash (Twitter)

The tragic news comes just three days after an Air India airplane flight bound for London crashed less than a minute after taking off from Ahmedabad, killing 241 passengers and dozens more on the ground in a giant fireball.

The doomed jet miraculously had one survivor, 40-year-old British man, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, who managed to walk away from the wreckage when it collided into residential buildings.

In today's incident, it is believed the helicopter was operated by the private helicopter service, Aryan Aviation, and officials suspect the crash was caused by adverse weather conditions, reports Sky News.

Nilesh Bharne, IG Law and Order, told the Indian Express: "Around 5.20am on Sunday, the helicopter went missing after taking passengers from Kedarnath, en route to Guptkashi. It crashed in Gaurikund, leading to seven deaths. We are ascertaining the reason for the crash."

Authorities are now assessing what went wrong and will review operational protocols for similar flights in the region.

Officials have confirmed seven people have died in the crash (Twitter)

A joint meeting is said to be taking place with the chief minister and other top officials to review the circumstances of the crash, including the Chief Secretary, Secretary of Tourism and Civil Aviation, Secretary of Disaster Management, and representatives from the Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA), Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), and the Directorate of Information, according to India Today.

Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami also said on Twitter: “The extremely distressing news of a helicopter crash in Rudraprayag district has been received.

"SDRF, local administration and other rescue teams are engaged in relief and rescue operations.”

It is not uncommon for helicopter crashes to occur in the region where flights are risky due to sudden weather changes.

In May, a helicopter crashed in Uttarkashi district which had just one survivor. The crash killed six people, including the pilot.

Earlier this month, a helicopter operating in the Kedarnath Valley had to make an emergency landing shortly after take off due to an alleged technical fault. All five passengers walked away unscathed though the pilot was reportedly injured.