A portion of the newly concreted helipad caved in after a chopper carrying President Droupdi Murmu landed at the Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium in Pramadam, Kerala, during her visit to the Sabrimala Temple. A video of the police and fire department officials pushing the helicopter out of the sunken spot has been doing the rounds on social media.

The President was on her way to offer prayers at the Sabarimala Temple as part of her official four-day visit to Kerala, which began on October 21 and will conclude on October 24, when the incident happened. 

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The now-viral video shows officials on site pushing the helicopter, which appears tilted to one side after one of its wheels sank into the ground. The video also shows officials placing a yellow-coloured block in front of one of the wheels to stabilise the aircraft.

According to a report by news agency PTI, one of the helicopter’s wheels sank into a newly concreted helipad moments after touchdown. The President later travelled to Pamba by road after her chopper could not land at Nilackal near Pamba, as the location was changed to Pramadam due to inclement weather.

A senior police officer told PTI that the decision to use the stadium for Wednesday’s landing was taken at the last minute, and the helipad had been constructed only a day earlier, on Tuesday. 

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“The concrete had not set completely, and therefore, it could not handle the helicopter’s weight when it landed and depressions were formed where the wheels touched the ground,” the officer explained.

On October 21, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan received the President on her arrival at Thiruvananthapuram. “Warmly welcomed Hon’ble President of India, Smt. Droupadi Murmu, on her visit to Kerala. Her presence is a great honour for the State and our people,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter). 

According to an official press release, the President will perform darshan and aarti at the Sabarimala Temple on October 22. On October 23, she will unveil a bust of former President of India, KR Narayanan, at Raj Bhavan, Thiruvananthapuram. Later that day, she will inaugurate the observance of the Mahasamadhi Centenary of Sree Narayana Guru at Sivagiri Mutt, Varkala, and attend the valedictory function of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations of St Thomas College, Palai.

On October 24, President Murmu will attend the centenary celebrations of St Teresa’s College, Ernakulam.