An unmanned testing aircraft of the DRDO crashed on farmland at Vaddikere in Hiriyur taluk of Chitradurga district on Sunday. No one was injured in the incident.
The incident happened around 8.15 a.m. While a wing of the aircraft fell on the farmland that belongs to Thippeswamy, another portion was found a few metres away on the land that belongs to Siddappa. Basappa, who was spraying pesticide on his pomegranate farm nearby, noticed the crash after hearing a bang. The local people then informed the police.
Chitradurga Superintendent of Police K. Parashuram told The Hindu that the unmanned aircraft was being operated by the DRDO facility at Kudapura near Challakere.
The police and the DRDO team, including project director S. Rajagopal, reached the spot. DRDO India, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), said “TAPAS UAV was undergoing an experimental flight trial today morning from ATR Challakere, Karnataka. During the flight, a technical snag was encountered, and the UAV crashed in nearby farmland. The technical reason is being investigated, and there is no collateral damage”.
Second incident
A similar incident happened at Jodi Chikkenahalli near Challakere on September 17, 2019. The two incidents have left residents of villages around the Aeronautical Test Range (ATR) established by the DRDO in Challakere, anxious.
Many people who gathered at the spot following the incident took photographs of the crashed aircraft, while a few sat on its broken wings. A majority of them were discussing the impact if it had fallen on an individual or a residence. The local people raised the issue of compensation for farmers who suffered losses due to the incident.
Kodihally Santhosh, a resident of Kodihally, also in Hiriyur taluk, said this time the aircraft fell on an agricultural land, damaging the crop. “It could have fallen on any house, any property, or a group of people gathered for an event, causing loss of lives. I don’t know how safe we, the residents in Hiriyur and Challakere taluks, are,” he said.
Safety
Rajesh Kumar C., tahsildar of Hiriyur who was at the spot, interacted with the DRDO officials on the compensation part. Mr. Rajesh Kumar told The Hindu that the crop (groundnut) was damaged because of the crash and also because of the movement of people who visited the spot following the incident. Officials would make an assessment of the loss.
Chitradurga Deputy Commissioner Divya Prabhu G.R.J. also spoke to senior officials of the DRDO on this issue. She told The Hindu that the DRDO had third-party insurance for the aircraft and that the loss caused would be covered. “We are assessing the crop loss caused, and the same will be conveyed to the DRDO,” she said. Further, the officer said that the safety of local people was paramount during test trials. “The DRDO people told us that they will do technical analysis for the crash,” she added.
