Patna: The impact of Cyclone Montha extended beyond flooding streets and waterlogged fields, grounding Bihar’s high-voltage Assembly election campaign as relentless rain and poor visibility brought helicopter operations to a near standstill.
Over the past three days, 22 scheduled helicopter flights by major political parties were cancelled due to turbulent weather, waterlogged helipads, and low visibility, severely disrupting campaign plans just days before polling. According to the Meteorological Department, visibility in Patna on Friday dropped to around 2,000 metres, with westerly winds blowing at barely three kilometres per hour, making flight operations unsafe.
Only two helicopters managed to take off on Friday — one belonging to the BJP and another to Tej Pratap Yadav’s Janshakti Janata Dal. BJP leader and Bhojpuri actor Manoj Tiwari addressed rallies in Khagaria, while Tej Pratap Yadav held events in Simri Bakhtiyarpur. Most other star campaigners were grounded.
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, BJP national president JP Nadda, RJD leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, JD (U) working president Sanjay Jha, and VIP chief Mukesh Sahni were among those forced to cancel multiple public meetings.
According to party sources, deteriorating helipad conditions across several districts made even short-haul flights unsafe. Data shared by district officials showed that the BJP cancelled nine flights, the RJD six, the JD (U) three, the Congress two, and the VIP two over the past three days.
