Prez takes road to IAF station instead of by air, leaves TN

President Ramnath Kovind, on a three-day visit here, was forced to travel by road instead of by air to reach the Sulur Air Force Station near Coimbatore on Friday following inclement weather.

Kovind arrived here on August 3 after attending the centenary celebrations of the Tamil Nadu Assembly in Chennai the previous day. He participated in various functions in the Nilgiris district and was to leave for Sulur at 9.30 AM on Friday, official sources said. But, he did not take the chopper as it began to rain and he and his wife Savita Anand travelled by car.

Before the departure, both planted a sapling at the botanical garden here. Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit was also present. The President arrived at Sulur at around 2.30 PM and then left for Delhi by a special flight, the sources said.