AP to provide special flight from Dehradun for stranded pilgrims

Andhra CM Reddy rushes to Delhi, promises help to pilgrims

The Andhra Pradesh government on Monday said it was arranging a Jet Airways plane from Dehradun to carry the stranded pilgrims of the state to Hyderabad tomorrow.

The decision came after Opposition leader and former chief minister N Chandra Babu Naidu made critical remarks about the government’s ‘half-hearted’ steps in providing relief and support to the AP tourists in Uttarakhand. Naidu’s party is also arranging a special plane from Dehradun to evacuate AP people.

Local newspapers flashed photos of Naidu’s meeting with Uttarakhand chief minister Vijay Bahuguna on required help to AP pilgrims. On Tuesday, chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy met some of the pilgrims at AP Bhavan in New Delhi and promised all help at the earliest.

Over the last six days, a team of officials had been contacting the pilgrims from AP and sending them by road to Haridwar and Rishkesh and then transporting them to Delhi, according to the chief minister’s office.

A team of ministers camping in Delhi and Dehradun to oversee the relief arrangements,  met Air Force Director General (Operations) Air Marshal Siris Deo and requested him to increase air and helicopter services to quickly bring back the stranded tourists to AP, according to an official statement.