6 more bodies of Coonoor chopper crash victims identified

New Delhi: Mortal remains of two Army personnel and four Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel on board the chopper that crashed near Coonoor, killing India's first CDS General Bipin Rawat, have been identified, Defence sources said on Saturday.

Last respects were paid to the mortal remains, which was later handed over to their families for the last rites, they said.

The chopper crash, that happened close to Coonoor in Tamil Nadu on Wednesday, led to the death of Chief of Defence Staff Gen Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat, Brigadier LS Lidder and 10 others on board.

The pilot, Group Captain Varun Singh is the sole survivor, and is in a critical state in the Command Hospital in Bengaluru.

Last rites of General Rawat, his wife, and Brigadier Lidder were performed on Friday. The CDS and his wife's ashes were collected by their daughters, Kritika and Tarini on Saturday morning.

Others who died were Lieutenant Colonel Harjinder Singh, Wing Commander Prithvi Singh Chauhan, Squadron Leader Kuldeep Singh, Junior Warrant Officers Rana Pratap Das and Arakkal Pradeep, Havildar Satpal Rai, Naik Gursewak Singh, Naik Jitendra Kumar, Lance Naik Vivek Kumar and Lance Naik B Sai Teja.(UNI)