Man held for giving death threat to Delhi CM: Official
New Delhi (PTI): A 30-year-old man was apprehended on Saturday for allegedly issuing a death threat under the influence of alcohol to Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, after police refused to help him contact his estranged wife, an official said.
Accused Shlok Tripathi alias Shlok Tiwari was apprehended in a joint operation conducted by the Delhi Police and the Uttar Pradesh Police from Ghaziabad, he added.
The accused is being jointly interrogated at the office of the Delhi Police's Special Staff in northwest Delhi by the Uttar Pradesh Police, Delhi Police, Special Cell and Intelligence Bureau, a senior police officer said.
Shlok, who is pursuing an LLB (Bachelor of Laws) degree and works as a deed writer at the Ghaziabad court, was married in 2020.
However, his wife has been living separately in Delhi since last year, while he resides in Ghaziabad with his mother and sister.
While he mentioned during interrogation that his wife left her matrimonial house due to a dispute between her and his mother, police said she possibly took the decision as the accused has a drinking problem.
"He wanted to talk and meet his wife, who has been living separately from him due to his alcohol addiction. He was also in a nasha mukti kendra for three months last year," the officer said.
In a desperate attempt to talk to his wife, the accused dialled the emergency helpline number 112 in Ghaziabad on the intervening night of Thursday and Friday, the officer added.
"At first, he did not mention the Delhi chief minister's name. He asked police to make his wife come back and complained that she was not talking to him. However, when police did not pay heed, he threatened to kill the chief minister," he said.
The accused was reportedly under depression due to the separation with his wife, the officer said, adding that he has a history of making anonymous calls to police.
Following the threatening call, the Ghaziabad Police alerted its Delhi counterparts and dispatched a team to Panchwati Colony, from where the call was reportedly made, but the caller managed to evade getting caught, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Ghaziabad, Ritesh Tripathi said.
Meanwhile, police have increased Gupta's security details and strengthened it outside her northwest Delhi residence. The chief minister receives a "Z" category security cover of the Delhi Police.
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Indian startup's 'Drishti' satellite launched aboard SpaceX rocket
New Delhi (PTI): Bengaluru-based space start-up GalaxEye's Mission Drishti satellite was launched on Sunday aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket from California.
Mission Drishti is the world's first OptoSAR satellite, integrating electro-optical (EO) and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensors into a single operational platform, according to the company.
While EO sensors capture high-resolution images during sunlight and clear skies, SAR sensors provide all-weather and all-time images, using radar pulses.
In a statement, Suyash Singh, founder and CEO of GalaxEye, said, "With the satellite (Mission Drishti) now successfully in orbit, our immediate focus is on completing its commissioning. As we move through this phase, we are already witnessing strong global interest in the differentiated datasets enabled by our OptoSAR payload."
The satellite will help address long-standing limitations of conventional systems and enable more reliable and consistent data acquisition across diverse environmental conditions, the company said.
As a dual-use Earth observation satellite, the mission will support use cases across defence, agriculture, disaster management, maritime monitoring, and infrastructure planning.
The satellite is also expected to complement India's broader initiatives, including the 29 active Earth Observation satellites outlined in ISRO's recent annual report.
The launch came after five years of indigenous research and development, and extensive environmental testing and performance validation of the Mission Drishti.
In a statement, Lt Gen AK Bhatt (Retd), director general of Indian Space Association (ISpA), said, "GalaxEye has achieved what only a few global players have, which is seamlessly combining optical and SAR capabilities on a single platform to enable persistent, all-weather intelligence."
What stands out is not just the technology, but its broader impact on how downstream applications will increasingly define value in the space economy, particularly in Earth observation, where timely, decision-grade insights are critical," he added.
ISpA is the premier industry association of space and satellite companies in the country.
Union Minister Jitendra Singh also took note of the Mission Drishti launch, saying the development marked a significant milestone in India's space journey.
In a post on X, the minister said, "The successful launch of the world's first OptoSAR satellite, and the largest privately-built satellite in the country, reflects the immense potential of our young innovators driving nation-building."
GalaxEye aims to scale up Mission Drishti to a constellation of 10 satellites by 2030, developing a robust and sovereign Earth observation infrastructure for India.
