In an unfortunate incident, three people, including two pilots and an engineer, died after a helicopter crashed in Maharashtra’s Pune district and caught fire on Wednesday morning. The incident occurred around 6:45 am in hilly terrain in the Bavdhan area after the helicopter took off from a helipad situated at a golf course in the vicinity.

Reportedly, the helicopter was carrying two pilots, Paramjit Singh and G K Pillai, and one engineer, Pritam Bharadwaj. All the people who were on board died. 

Devendra Prabhakar Potphode, chief fire officer told media that when they reached the spot, they saw that the chopper had crashed and all its parts were scattered, and there was a smouldering fire. He added that they were able to extract three casualties, and these were handed over to the police.

Preliminary information stated the helicopter belonged to Heritage Aviation and was based in Pune. The police said that it had a registration number VT EVV. The helicopter was chartered by the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and was headed to Mumbai. NCP chief Sunil Tatkare said that he was going to visit Raigad in the helicopter.

The police stated that four fire tankers from the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) are presently at the spot. While the exact cause of the crash has not yet been identified, police officials said that dense fog could have possibly led to the mishap.

Earlier in August, a private helicopter flying from Mumbai to Hyderabad had crashed in Pune’s Paud village. All the four occupants survived the crash that took place near Paud, though they suffered injuries, a police official said.

Pankaj Deshmukh, superintendent of police (Pune Rural) stated that a private helicopter crashed near Paud village in Pune district. He added that the helicopter belongs to a private aviation company and was going from Mumbai to Hyderabad, four people were travelling in the helicopter, assessment of any injuries is being looked into.

The Andhra Pradesh government has halted the investigation by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) into the alleged adulteration of ghee used to make Tirupati laddus until the Supreme Court hearing on October 3.

This follows a day after the Supreme Court pulled up the Andhra Pradesh government for going public with its claim that animal fat was allegedly used in making Tirupati laddus under the previous Jagan Mohan Reddy led government.

The Supreme Court on Monday while observing that gods should be kept away from politics, questioned Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu’s public statement. A bench of Justice B R Gavai and Justice K V Viswanathan mentioned that it is prima facie indicating that these were rejected Ghee which were subjected to test. 

Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh top cop Dwaraka Tirumala Rao stated that the decision to pause the investigation was taken as a precautionary measure to ensure the investigation’s integrity. He added that they have stopped the investigation for the time being in view of the ongoing hearing in the Supreme Court. Dwaraka Tirumala Rao further added that their team has conducted various investigations, recorded statements of a few people and done a preliminary investigation. 

The investigation panel appointed amid a row over the presence of animals fats in Tirupati laddus, was led by Guntur Range Inspector General of Police.

Recently, the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu sparked a massive controversy after claiming that substandard ingredients, including animal fat, were discovered in the laddus served as prasad at Tirupati temple during the previous Jagan Mohan Reddy’s government. 

While pointing out a private lab report from Gujarat, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu alleged the presence of beef tallow, lard and fish oil in the ghee used for Tirupati laddoos. However, Jagan Mohan Reddy vehemently denied the allegations and accused Chandrababu Naidu of doing politics in the name of god. 

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge felt dizzy while addressing a public rally on Sunday in the Jasrota belt of Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district. He is now stable and doctors are attending to him, party leaders said.

Kharge was paying tribute to a head constable who was killed in an ongoing operation with terrorists in Kathua. Two other police personnel have been injured in the incident and one terrorist has been killed.

“He was addressing a public rally in Jasrota when he felt uneasy and dizzy. His colleagues helped him into a chair,” Congress general secretary Gulam Ahmed Mir told PTI. He added that the Congress president is stable.

“I am 83-year-old, but I am not going to die till PM Modi is removed from power,” Kharge said.  

Kharge had flown to Jasrota to address a rally to garner support for his party candidates in the assembly polls.

Jammu and Kashmir Congress vice president Ravindra Sharma said Kharge felt dizzy and was taken to a room, where doctors were called for a check-up. They will advise whether he can attend the second rally or not, he said.

In a post on X, Kharge said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is coming to Jammu and Kashmir and shedding fake tears for the future of the youth. “The truth is that in the last 10 years, the youth of the entire country has been pushed into darkness for which Modiji himself is responsible,” he added.

The Congress chief said that the unemployment figures have just come out and the highest unemployment in 45 years is the result of PM Modi.

“Modi and Shah are not thinking of providing employment but only giving speeches, taking photographs and cutting ribbons,” he slammed.

He said 65 per cent of the posts in government departments in Jammu and Kashmir are vacant. The jobs in J&K are being given to outsiders on a contractual and daily wages basis, he added. “I have received information that even in AIIMS Jammu, people from Jammu did not get jobs,” Kharge said.

“You must have heard how many lies Modiji told after coming to Jammu and Kashmir. How much abuses he gave to Congress, what kind of language he used. This shows his nervousness because he can clearly see defeat,” Kharge said.