New Delhi, May 1: Air Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria Wednesday assumed charge as Vice Chief of the Air Staff, succeeding Air Marshal Anil Khosla.

Air Marshal Singh, an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, was commissioned in the fighter stream of IAF on 15 Jun 1980.

He has over 4,250 hours of flying experience on 26 types of fighters and transport aircraft.

Air Marshal Singh had done his Masters in Defence Studies from Command and Staff College, Bangladesh.

The Air Marshal has held a number of important positions in the IAF which included commanding a Jaguar squadron and heading a premier Air Force station.

He was extensively involved in the initial prototype flight tests on the Light Combat Aircraft Tejas.

Air Marshal Bhadauria was also the Air Attache at Indian embassy, Moscow. Prior to assuming charge as Vice Chief of IAF, he was the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Training Command.

During his career, he was commended by the Chief of Air Staff and has been awarded Param Vishisht Seva Medal, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal and Vayu Sena Medal.

Air Marshal Khosla retired on Monday after an illustrious career spanning four decades.

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New Delhi (PTI): Three members of a family were found dead inside their home in southeast Delhi's Kalkaji on Friday, with police suspecting it to be a case of suicide, officials said.

Police said the incident came to light around 2.47 pm when a police team reached the premises to execute a court order related to possession of the property. When repeated knocks went unanswered, the staff used a duplicate key to open the door.

Inside, officers found Anuradha Kapoor (52) and her sons, Ashish Kapoor (32) and Chaitanya Kapoor (27), hanging from the ceiling, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southeast) Hemant Tiwari said in a statement. All three were declared dead.

A handwritten note was recovered from the room, suggesting the family had been struggling with depression.

"The handwritten note indicates emotional distress faced by the family due to which the family may have taken the extreme step," the officer said.

The bodies have been shifted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) mortuary for post-mortem and other legal formalities under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), police said.

Residents of the neighbourhood said they were shocked to learn about the deaths, adding that the family kept largely to themselves.

Pankaj Kashyap, a resident of Girinagar, said he learnt about the deaths while leaving for work. "I live and work here and was leaving for work when I saw many people standing outside and talking. That is how I got to know that three people had committed suicide. I also saw several police vehicles outside, but I do not know much beyond that," he said.

Baldev, another neighbour, said the family had been living in the newly constructed house for around two years. "We only knew that a mother and her two children lived there. They had moved into the newly built house around two years ago. We did not interact much with them. Today we heard that all three have committed suicide, and whatever we know is based on what people here are saying," he said.

Another neighbour, Ramesh Kumar, claimed the family had earlier attempted suicide.

"About fifteen to twenty days ago, the two sons in the family had attempted suicide and police and ambulances had come. That was when I first got to know who they were. I do not recognise them by face, but we saw the ambulances and police take the two sons that day. Today again we saw ambulances and police arriving, so everyone came out to see what had happened. I do not know how long they had been living here, but this is all we know," he said.

Police said they are examining the family's financial condition, social circumstances, and other factors that may have contributed to the incident. Further investigation is underway.