President Droupadi Murmu's helicopter wheels sink into newly concreted landing pad
Pathanamthitta(PTI): The wheels of the helicopter which carried President Droupadi Murmu for her Sabarimala visit got stuck in a depression in the newly concreted helipad at the Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium at Pramadam here when it landed on Wednesday morning.
After the President left for Pamba by road, visuals on TV channels showed several policemen and fire force personnel pushing the helicopter's wheels out of the small depressions created when it landed on the concrete.
A senior police officer of the district said that the stadium was fixed as the location for landing the helicopter at the last moment and therefore, the helipad was created there late on Tuesday.
The landing was originally planned at Nilackal near Pamba, but it was changed to Pramadam due to inclement weather.
"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 said.
The President, who arrived in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday evening for a four-day official visit to the southern state, left for Pathanamthitta district, where the hill shrine is located, this morning.
From Pramadam, Murmu is travelling to Pamba, the foothills of Sabarimala, via road.
#WATCH | Kerala: A portion of the helipad tarmac sank in after a chopper carrying President Droupdi Murmu landed at Pramadam Stadium. Police and fire department personnel deployed at the spot physically pushed the helicopter out of the sunken spot. pic.twitter.com/QDmf28PqIb
— ANI (@ANI) October 22, 2025
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Power tariffs under BESCOM to rise from May 1
Bengaluru (PTI): Power bills for consumers under the Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited (BESCOM) will go up from May 1, following an order issued by the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) on Friday.
The hike comes after KERC allowed the BESCOM to recover a revenue deficit of Rs 2,068 crore incurred in 2024-25, from the consumers.
As a result, for every unit of electricity consumed in 2024-25, the customers will be charged an additional 56 paise, it said.
"BESCOM shall calculate, for each of the active consumers of FY2024-25 the amount to be recovered based on their actual energy consumption during FY2024-25. Such amount shall be recovered during FY 2026-27 in equal monthly instalments, to be called as 'FY25 True up Charges', commencing from the first meter reading date falling on or after 1 May 2026 and concluding with the reading date ending on 30 April 2027," the order said.
"It is further ordered that BESCOM shall maintain a separate head of account, allocated for the purpose, to record the adjustment of the said amount to ensure full recovery of the deficit," it added.
Similarly Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Corporation Limited (CESC) has also recorded a revenue deficit of Rs 121.71 crore and can collect an additional 15 paisa per unit for consumption in 2024-25, official sources said.
