Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and four others were killed after their aircraft crashed in Baramati on January 28, 2026. Here are 11 other prominent Indians who died in air crashes.
General Manoj Mukund Naravane's memoir has triggered a controversy by revealing behind-the-scenes decision-making during the 2020 India-China standoff in Ladakh. Its candid account of military and political responses at a critical moment has reignited debate over civil-military relations, accountability, and the limits of disclosure in matters of national security.
A parliamentary panel report has attributed the December 8, 2021, helicopter crash that killed India's first Chief of Defence Staff, Gen Bipin Rawat, and his wife, to "human error." The report, tabled in Parliament on Tuesday, also revealed that 34 Indian Air Force aircraft accidents occurred during the 13th Defence Plan period, including nine in 2021-22 and 11 in 2018-19.
The Uttar Pradesh government, under Yogi Adityanath, is preparing a comprehensive plan to identify and act against infiltrators to strengthen internal security and ensure government schemes reach eligible beneficiaries.
The government has extended the tenure of Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan up to May next year.
Vijay Rawat, brother of India's first chief of defence staff General Bipin Rawat who recently died in a helicopter crash, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday.
Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat and 11 others were killed when an Indian Air Force helicopter carrying them crashed on Wednesday near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu in apparently foggy conditions, killing 13 people on board, the IAF and other officials said.
Former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani, who died in a tragic plane crash in Ahmedabad on Thursday, joined the list of several top Indian politicians and prominent personalities who lost their lives in aviation accidents.
'There is a clear relationship between the Char Dham road widening and these landslides.' 'The situation has further worsened with the massive influx of tourists whose number are running into several lakhs per month.' 'No parameters have been laid down to control tourist inflow and the result is that the Char Dham yatra has seen a sharp escalation in accidents and loss of lives.'
This is probably the first time Rahul Gandhi is attending this committee's meeting since being nominated to the panel last year after Lok Sabha elections.
Gen Rawat will be able to serve as CDS for a period of up to three years after the government amended the rules extending the age of retirement to 65 years.
Lt General Rawat belongs to the famous 5th Battalion of 11th Gorkha Rifles. He is the current vice chief of army staff of Indian Army.
Chief of defence staff Bipin Rawat on Thursday said the controversy about the Chinese coming into the Indian territory and building a new village is 'not true,' and that the villages were well within the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control.
In a composed and clear presentation, Colonel Sofiya Qureshi announced that nine terrorist facilities had been destroyed in the tri-services operation.
"The force is to maintain peace and tranquillity at the border but it will not shy away from flexing its muscles, if the need be," Gen Rawat said.
'Sunny sir keeps me distracted from my morning sickness.'
Her husband, Squadron Leader Kuldeep Singh, died in a helicopter crash in the Nilgiris in which India's first CDS General Bipin Rawat was killed.
Rawat was briefed on the prevailing security situation in J&K Valley and recent operations conducted by the security forces.
Currently women are allowed in a number of select areas including in medical, legal, educational, signals and engineering wings of the army.
Huge crowds of mourners gathered outside as armed forces personnel took the mortal remains of Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and his wife Madhulika Rawat inside the Brar Square crematorium in the Delhi Cantonment on Friday.
It's been a year since a helicopter crash in the Nilgiris tragically took away India's first Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat and 10 other military officers and personnel.
Wing Commander Prithvi Singh Chauhan was the pilot of the crashed Indian Air Force (IAF) Mi-17V5 helicopter, carrying Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat and 13 others, informed sources.
On Saturday morning, the daughters of CDS General Rawat, Kritika and Tarini, collected the ashes of their parents from Brar Square crematorium in Delhi Cantonment and reached Haridwar to immerse them in the Ganges.
General Bipin Rawat, his wife and 11 others were killed in a helicopter crash near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu on Wednesday, the Indian Air Force said.
Pakistan Army's spokesman in a short statement posted on Twitter said that Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) General Nadeem Raza and Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa expressed condolences.
Their mortal remains are expected to arrive in the national capital in a military plane by Thursday evening, the sources said.
In his condolence message, Modi said he was deeply anguished by the helicopter crash in which Rawat, his wife and other personnel of the armed forces died.
The chopper took off at 11.48 am from the Sulur Air Base and was reported to be missing at around 12.22 pm, sources informed.
Condolences over the demise of chief of defence staff Gen Bipin Rawat poured in on Wednesday from various countries, including the US, Russia and Pakistan.
'With deep regret, it has now been ascertained that Gen Bipin Rawat, Mrs Madhulika Rawat and 11 other persons on board have died in the unfortunate accident,' the IAF tweeted.
Tears flowed at a memorial event for General Bipin Rawat organised on his first death anniversary at the United Service Institution of India in New Delhi, December 10, 2022.
Several politicians, including senior ministers, wished for the well-being and safety of Rawat and others on board.
Admiral R Hari Kumar said while addressing those who completed their four month rigorous training here at INS Chilika, "I assure you (Agniveer), wherever you go, you will be fully prepared with confidence and motivation to face any challenge in the life."
A 44-year-old man in Gujarat, who had allegedly made derogatory remarks on his Facebook page about the death of chief of defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, was arrested by the Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Cell on Thursday, officials said.
The Lok Sabha observed a two-minute silence on the demise of the 13 people.
The IAF said that Gen Rawat, his wife and 11 other persons died in accident.
The plaintive strains of bugles sounding the last post broke through the hush, men in uniform clicked their heels and a 17-gun salute rang out as Gen Bipin Rawat and his wife were cremated on Friday evening -- the sun setting on a day written into India's military history and on the life of its most senior military officer.
At a time when the process to appoint the new chief of defence staff is on, the government has sought the names of senior serving and retired officers from the Army, Navy and Air Force.
Condemning irresponsible social media posts and rejoicing over the demise of Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat in a military chopper crash, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Friday said he has asked the police to identify and initiate legal action against them.
People pay their respects to the chief of defence staff and the 13 others who died in Wednesday's helicopter crash near Coonoor.
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