Belagavi: Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Tuesday said the Karnataka government has decided to avail high-quality helicopter and special aircraft services on rental basis for the travel needs of VIPs during emergency and special situations. A committee headed b:y Shivakumar held a meeting at Suvarna Vidhana Soudha here to discuss matters related to helicopter and special aircraft services. "We will not be purchasing helicopters or special aircraft," he said.
Speaking to media, when asked about the meeting, Shivakumar said, "We had asked HAL to provide helicopter services. They said it would take more time. Helicopters are being manufactured at HAL itself. During the air show, me and Union Minister Rajnath Singh had seen them. The helicopter there was good, and they handle its maintenance. So we had requested their services. As they said the service would be delayed, they have recommended another agency." Shivakumar said that tenders have been floated and a few parties have participated. Therefore, members of the Cabinet sub-committee -- Ministers K J George, M B Patil, Satish Jarkiholi, Byrathi Suresh along with officials held a meeting and discussed the matter.
"We will hold another meeting next Monday or Tuesday. We need people with technical expertise for this. We will consider those who have provided good services to other governments. For us, both safety and the government's money are important," he said.
"Ministers have given suggestions based on their own experiences. Hence, it has been decided not to purchase but to take helicopters on rent, calculated on an hourly basis," he added.
(This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)