The Madhya Pradesh government sold the helicopter to an aviation scrap dealer for 2.57 crore after seven unsuccessful efforts to sell off the helicopter, the authorities said. The state government bought the Bel 430 VT MPS helicopter in 1998. For the previous ten years, the state aviation department was seeking a buyer.
Aviation department director Bharat Yadav reported that FA Enterprises, a business run by aviation scrap dealer and aircraft repair engineer Naim Raza, won the offer in an auction that was opened on May 31.
The helicopter had met with an accident in 2003 when Anuradha Paudwal, a well-known singer, was travelling on it to attend an event. Paudwal and Rajendra Singh Raghuvanshi, personal assistants to the then chief minister Digvijaya Singh, were injured in the event.
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The government did not receive any claims since the aircraft was not covered by insurance. The officials stated that it was later fixed and continued to be sold in 2012 despite its maker, Rolls Royce, no longer supplying its components. ‘We don’t see the qualification of the buyer. Two buyers made the bid and FA Enterprises won it. Had we failed this time too, it could have caused heavy loss to the government’, Yadav said.
Naim Raza has previously bought aeroplane engines as well as other components. According to Raza, the plane will be fixed and given a second chance to fly. ‘My friend will get it repaired by the experts’, Raza added.
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