Pathanamthitta (Kerala), Oct 22: The helicopter carrying President Droupadi Murmu for her Sabarimala visit got its wheels stuck in depressions on a newly concreted helipad at the Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium in Pramadam on Wednesday morning.
After the President proceeded to Pamba by road, TV visuals showed several police and fire personnel working to push the helicopter wheels out of the small depressions formed when it landed.
A senior district police officer explained that the stadium was chosen as the landing site at the last minute, leading to the helipad being constructed only on Tuesday. The original landing was planned at Nilackal near Pamba but was shifted to Pramadam due to adverse weather conditions.
“The concrete had not fully set and could not bear the helicopter’s weight when it landed, causing depressions where the wheels touched the ground,” the officer said.
President Murmu had arrived in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday evening for a four-day official visit to Kerala and traveled to Pathanamthitta district on Wednesday morning, continuing her journey to the Sabarimala foothills at Pamba by road.