A helicopter carrying eight people, including a government minister and two lawmakers, crashed in mountainous northeast India today, a police officer said.
He said there was no immediate word about the fate of the people on board the helicopter, which went down near Shillong, the capital of Meghalaya state. Initial reports spoke of low visibility in the area, the officer said.
State Community and Rural Development Minister Syprian Sangma and two members of the Meghalaya state assembly were on board the helicopter run by a state-run transport company.
The helicopter was flying from Guwahati, the largest city in the northeast, to Shillong, the officer said. Helicopters are a common mode of transport in the mountainous northeast.