Kolkata-Santiniketan chopper service inaugurated

Bolpur: The Kolkata-Santiniketan helicopter service was formally inaugurated on Sunday. The programme was attended by actor Prasenjit Chatterjee and director Srijeet Mukherjee.
On Sunday, the helicopter was flagged off from a makeshift helipad. A permanent helipad will be constructed at Paruldanga.
Prasenjit and Srijeet, the first two passengers of the chopper, reached Bolpur dak bungalow ground on Sunday morning.State fisheries minister Chandranath Sinha, Sabhadhipati of Birbhum zilla parishad Bikash Roy Chowdhury and other dignitaries shared the dais with the actor and director duo.
During the programme, Prasenjit and Srijeet spoke about their new film and asked the people of Birbhum to watch the film.
Prasenjit said, "We had to come here to take part in the promotion of our new film Jatiswar. In the meantime, I heard that the helicopter service will be formally inaugurated. I spoke to chief minister Mamata Banerjee and expressed my wish to come here for the inauguration. She allowed me."
Later, Sinha told mediapersons, "This helicopter service is not for tourists. It is started to help patients reach Kolkata for treatment."
District magistrate, Birbhum, Jagdish Prasad Meena, sub-divisional magistrate (SDM), Bolpur, Malay Halder, and other senior officers were present on the occasion. Halder said, "Today, only the VIPs travelled by the copter. We hope from the next week, regular service will be available. Tickets will be available through the website of a private operator. The permanent helipad at Paruldanga near Santiniketan is almost ready."