State Govt to hire choppers ahead of polls

Jaipur: The State Government will hire helicopters till the code of conduct for assembly elections. Now the Government will start the process for hiring helicopters. The Civil Aviation Department has made preparations to hire helicopters on rent till the commencement of the code of conduct for the assembly polls.

A proposal has been sent to the Finance Department for this. Tenders for five to eight seater helicopters will be issued after the approval from the CM. The helicopter with VVIP facilities will be taken from the company with the lowest bid.

Helicopters are needed for visits during election time. The state government’s plan to buy new government aircraft and helicopters has been shelved. After the presentation of the companies regarding this, the whole process could have taken up to one-and-a-half-years. So, the government will have to run its work only with hired aircraft during election tours.

Earlier, the government had four-seater and single engine helicopters. Seeing the shortcomings of those helicopters, this time the process of purchasing multi-turbine engine helicopters was started. A VVIP helicopter with a multi-turbine engine was to be purchased, which could cost Rs 100 crore. Besides, VVIP 12 seater jet aircraft purchase was proposed. This would have cost between Rs 200 to Rs 250 crore. It could have taken six months to one-and-ahalf-years for the entire process from tender to completion. So, helicopters on rent will be hired for tours during polls.