Fog spikes Akhilesh Yadav's date with NRIs in Gujarat

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav Friday missed his date with non-resident Indians (NRIs) at the Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas Sammelan 2015 underway in Gujarat, due to dense fog and poor visibility at Saifai airport.

Yadav was to chair the UP session at the convention and the UP government had made elaborate arrangements for the event.

Many officials were camping in Gujarat for the past many days coordinating meeting of NRI businessmen with Akhilesh Yadav.

An official told IANS that the aircraft which was supposed to take the chief minister to Gujarat could not take off from Saifai till late as the pilots advised caution in view of the poor weather.

Yadav was in Saifai for the Bollywood night at his native village Thursday and was to take off for Gujarat. But poor weather spiked his engagement. Efforts were also made for his departure from the Lucknow airport but the ATC refused permission to take off due to the dense fog and poor visibility.

Officials at the Amausi airport told IANS that the airport has category 2 integrated systems installed where a minimum visibility of 300-350 metres on the runway is enough for a flight to take off. However, for VIPs this parameter is 800 metres. A tweet from the chief minister's office later said that Akhilesh Yadav had expressed hope that the NRI's would continue with their bond with the motherland and contribute towards the development and progress of the state.