The scene around the Jolly Grant Airport is one of gloom and despair. One can find sad faces with moist eyes that seem to have given up hope of finding their missing near and dear ones, but still they have been waiting for a week now. The disaster that hit the Himalayan State 10 days ago seems to have changed their perception of life.
Some are returning home, while some others are still spending their days outside the airport. They attentively listened to other kin and pacify their counterparts as police personnel on duty make any announcement. Tiring wait has stolen their zeal. Some of them don’t even want to speak to media persons. The discussion among them reflects despair. “I have no idea about the future. Though all conditions point to negative developments, I still believe that my kin will return safe. They might be stranded in a distant village in the hills,” a person waiting for his kin said.
The other one reacted similarly. Some of the kin are not interested in having food from the relief camps set up outside the airport. As a volunteer offered them food in a plate, the interacting duo said, “No, Thanks.” The duo exchanged words over the chopper crash that claimed nine lives.
“All that is happening is beyond my understanding. The 20 members, including five Air Force personnel, nine National Disaster Relief (NDRF) personnel and six Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) police personnel, engaged in the rescue operations lost their lives when the chopper they were on board crashed. They were there to save the people but lost their lives,” a kin told his fellow. The duo expressed grief over the incident.
The next moment their conversation turned towards the concern of their kin. There were many others who were in the same state of mind. The crowd of kin outside the airport is decreasing as several kin left for their homes with diminishing hopes of seeing their missing kin again.