Kathmandu: A private helicopter with 24 people aboard, including a minister, some diplomats and journalists, went missing on Saturday in the mountains in eastern Nepal and was feared to have cashed.
Minister of State for Forest and Soil Conservation Gopal Rai and his wife, a Secretary in the Ministry, the chief of the Department of Wildlife and National Parks, wildlife experts and some diplomats and journalists were on board the helicopter, officials said.
The Sri Airlines chopper took off for Kathmandu from an airport in Taplejung district at and lost contact with the control tower shortly.
The helicopter is believed to have crashed in the mountains but no wreckage could be located so far, officials said.
Bad weather has hampered rescue work in the mountainous region.
An army helicopter and a private chopper that were sent on rescue missions have returned to Kathmandu due to unfavorable weather conditions, state run Nepal Television reported.
The minister and his entourage were returning to the Capital after attending a function in the Kanchanjunga Conservation Area situated some 500 km north-east of Kathmandu, sources at the Prime Minister's Office said.
Rai had handed over the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area to the local community on Friday with the objective of preserving its biodiversity with local participation.
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