Belagavi Police investigate suspicious death of businessman, Body exhumed for autopsy
Belagavi: The Belagavi city police have launched an investigation into the death of businessman Santosh Padmannavar, whose body was exhumed for an autopsy following concerns raised by his daughter regarding the circumstances of his demise.
Santosh Padmannavar, 47, passed away on October 9. His daughter, Sanjana Padmannavar, 18, who was studying in Bengaluru, returned home for the cremation, which was conducted according to Lingayat traditions. Initially, Sanjana was informed that her father's death was due to a cardiac arrest and that his eyes were donated as per his wishes. However, she found it difficult to believe that her otherwise healthy father could have died from a heart attack.
Sanjana's suspicions intensified when she discovered that footage from multiple CCTV cameras at their home had been deleted. Concerned about her mother Uma’s potential involvement, she, with the support of relatives, filed a complaint with the police.
In response to the complaint, police exhumed Santosh’s body for an autopsy. Preliminary investigations indicated potential foul play, as CCTV footage obtained from neighbors revealed two individuals entering the family home around the time of the death.
Belagavi Police Commissioner Ida Martin Marbaniang stated, “We are currently questioning four individuals, including the victim's mother Uma and two maids. We expect to gain more clarity once the autopsy report is received.
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ISRO successfully conducts second integrated air drop test for Gaganyaan mission
New Delhi (PTI): Space agency ISRO has successfully conducted the second integrated air drop test (IADT-02) for the upcoming Gaganyaan mission at the space station in Andhra Pradesh's Sriharikota.
The system is essential to ensure a safe recovery of the crew module -- the capsule in which astronauts sit during a human flight -- during re-entry and landing.
Union minister Jitendra Singh congratulated the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for successfully conducting the test.
"Congratulations #ISRO for the successful accomplishment of Second Integrated Air Drop Test (IADT-02) for #Gaganyaan, India's first Human Space flight scheduled next year. The second Integrated Air Drop Test (IADT-02) was successfully conducted at Satish Dhawan Space Station Sriharikota," Singh said in a post on X.
The IADT-02 follows the successful completion of the first IADT, which took place on August 24, 2025, at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
Air drop tests recreate the last leg of a spacecraft's return to Earth. An aircraft or helicopter drops the spacecraft from a height to test various systems under different scenarios.
These are the deployment of the parachute system in case the mission is aborted mid-flight, system performance when one parachute fails to open and the spacecraft's orientation and safety during splashdown etc.
In the IADT-02 test, a simulated crew module, weighing about 5.7 tonnes, was lifted by an Indian Air Force Chinook helicopter to an altitude of about three kilometres and released over a designated drop zone in the sea, near the Sriharikota coast.
In a statement, the ISRO said, "Ten parachutes of four types were deployed in a precise sequence during the descent of the crew module, gradually reducing the velocity for safe touchdown. Subsequently, the simulated crew module was successfully recovered in coordination with the Indian Navy."
