'Pained to hear about the demise of Group Captain Varun Singh'

Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee expressed her deep condolences for the demise of Group Captain Varun Singh.

He was the only survivor of the Indian Air Force helicopter crash that killed Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and 12 others.

Group Captain Singh succumbed to his injuries and passed away on Wednesday. The 39-year-old had been critically injured in the helicopter crash. He was being treated at a military hospital in Bengaluru and was on life support.

"Pained to hear about the demise of Group Captain Varun Singh. The entire nation will always remember your invaluable service. I salute

your valour and offer my deepest condolences to the bereaved family," Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee tweeted. On December 8, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had expressed her deep condolences for the untimely demise of the Chief of Defence Staff, his wife and 11 other Armed Forces personnel and she ended her administrative review meeting in Malda midway soon after receiving the news of the chopper accident.

She had said: "We have received sad news just now. I am really shocked and have no words to express my grief. I am ending the meeting though we had some more things to discuss."