Tearful adieu to Ballia IAF man

VARANASI: The mortal remains of Indian Air Force air warrior Suraj Kumar Singh, who was killed in AN-32 transport aircraft crash on June 3, was consigned to flames amidst full state honours at the cremation ground near his ancestral place in Shobha Chhpra village of Ballia district on Friday late afternoon.
Emotions ran high as the IAF personnel reached here with the coffin wrapped in national tri-colour. Thousands of people stood ta the road sides as the vehicle carrying mortal remains of the air warrior reached the village in Chiraiyyakot area.
People turned emotional as Singh’s wife Shalu gave a teary eyed salute to the air warrior. Guard of honour was given by IAF guards in the presence of senior officials of district administration and police. A large number of people from the village took part in the funeral procession. Singh’s younger brother Prince lit his pyre.
The Russian-origin AN-32 aircraft, on which Singh was present, went missing on the afternoon of June 3, around 33 minutes after taking off from Jorhat in Assam for Menchuka in AP. After eight days of a massive search operation, the wreckage of the plane was spotted by an IAF chopper on June 11 at a height of 12,000 ft near Gatte village on the border of Siang and Shi-Yomi districts in Arunachal Pradesh. On June 13, eight members of the rescue team reached the crash site in search of the survivors when it was confirmed that of all 13 people on board none survived the crash.