India's first woman DGP Kanchan Chaudhary, the inspiration behind 'Udaan' TV serial, dies
Mumbai/Dehradun, Aug 27: Kanchan Chaudhary Bhattacharya, the country's first woman DGP and whose inspiring true life story was adapted into a popular tele-serial 'Udaan' aired on Doordarshan in late 80s, died in a Mumbai hospital after prolonged illness.
She was 72.
Chaudhary breathed her last late Monday night at a private hospital in Mumbai, a police official said, adding she is survived by her husband and two daughters.
She was undergoing medical treatment for prolonged illness since the last few months, the Uttarakhand Police said in a tweet.
The state police also remembered Chaudhary, a 1973 batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, as the first woman Director General of Police (DGP) of any state in the country.
The IPS Association in a tweet remembered her for her "sterling qualities of head and heart", and an illustrious career "adorned with many firsts and awards".
"We mourn the demise of one of our icons, the first lady DGP and second lady IPS officer of India, Kanchan Chaudhary Bhattacharya," the association said in the tweet.
Born in Himachal Pradesh, Chaudhary was the country's second woman IPS officer after Kiran Bedi.
She led the Uttarakhand Police force as DGP from 2004 to October 31, 2007.
During her 33-year-long career, she handled some sensitive cases, including the killing of national badminton champion Syed Modi and the Reliance-Bombay Dyeing case.
She earlier served as the Inspector General of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF).
In 1997, she was awarded the President's police medal for distinguished service.
She made a guest appearance in 'Udaan' aired on Doordarshan in late 80s, which was based on her life, showing her struggles to become an IPS officer. The serial was one of the first shows on Indian television to deal with the subject of women empowerment.
The serial was written and directed by her younger sister Kavita Chaudhary who also played the lead protagonist.
After retirement, she joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and unsuccessfully contested the 2014 Lok Sabha polls in Haridwar.
Her last rites will be performed at the Worli crematorium in Mumbai on Wednesday.
Uttarakhand Governor Baby Rani Maurya condoled the death of Kanchan Chaudhary, saying she symbolised women empowerment.
"She was a living example of women empowerment and will remain a role model for generations of women. By rising to the top in the police force she proved there was nothing women could not achieve," the governor said in a condolence message.
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MP boat tragedy: Death toll rises to 10 with recovery of one more body; 3 tourists still missing
Jabalpur (PTI): The body of a child was retrieved on Saturday evening from Bargi Dam in Jabalpur district of Madhya Pradesh, raising the death toll in the cruise boat tragedy that took place two days ago to ten, while search continued for three missing tourists.
The boat, operated by the state tourism department, capsized during a storm on Thursday evening with some of the survivors alleging negligence and safety lapses such as life jackets not being distributed in time.
The body recovered on Saturday evening was possibly that of six-year-old Viraj Soni, said Sub-Divisional Officer of Police (SDOP) Anjul Ayank Mishra.
"The identity will be confirmed after family members identify the body," he told PTI.
Kamraj, an employee of the Ordnance Factory at Khamaria, his five-year-old son Tamil, and another child Mayuram (5) who had come from southern India were still missing.
Authorities have arranged equipment to search deep waters of the dam and are getting a generator to facilitate diving operations, Mishra added.
Divers and disaster response teams have expanded the search radius to five km, he said.
Of the 41 identified passengers on board the ill-fated vessel, 28 were rescued, police said.
More than 200 rescuers, including around 20 Army divers airlifted from Agra, joined the search operation that resumed at 5 on Saturday morning. The operation, involving the National Disaster Response Force, State Disaster Response Force and local divers, was briefly affected at around 9 am due to strong winds, officials said.
Post-mortem examinations of nine deceased persons have been completed, Mishra said.
"Our priority is to search for the missing persons. We will also register a First Information Report in the case soon," he said.
Police said CCTV footage near the boarding point showed 43 people heading towards the boat while the identities of 41 passengers have been confirmed so far.
The state government on Friday ordered a probe into the tragedy and dismissed three crew members. It also banned operation of similar vessels in the state.
