A group of women comprising wives of Army officers today met Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar here urging him to stop the use of "outdated" Cheetah and Chetak helicopters, which has claimed a number of lives.
Meenal Wagh-Bhosale, wife of a serving Major in the Indian Army, met with Parrikar for about 20 minutes and handed him a petition which has received about 23,000 signatures online.
"He was very understanding and said modernisation was a top priority for him. He assured us that the government is taking steps to replace the Cheetah and Chetak helicopters," Meenal told PTI here.
Talking about how dangerous these choppers were, she said at present there are 175 Cheetah and Chetak helicopters in Army service.
"These choppers are 30-40 years old and had been involved in several crashes killing pilots and defence personnel," she said, adding that she was satisfied with her meeting with Parrikar.
Meenal said the group of 28 women want new and modern helicopters to avoid crashes and save valuable lives of pilots and other personnel.
She noted that both Cheetah and Chetak have single engines unlike two in the modern models that make the latter more reliable in emergencies.
The Ministry has been trying to procure new helicopters for the defence forces, including the Army Aviation since 2007, she said.
