20 March 2009
Venkatesh Chapalgaonkar
Road accident
Venkatesh Chapalgaonkar, the Pune bureau chief of the Star Majha television channel, has been killed in a road accident near Sholapur.
According to a colleague, Chapalgaonkar was proceeding to Sholapur to cover a political event of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Sharad Pawar Monday evening.
Around 30 km from Sholapur, the driver of the Tata Indica private taxi in which Chapalgaonkar and his colleague were travelling lost control and the vehicle plunged into a ravine over 30 feet deep.
While Chapalgaonkar, 39, died on the spot, the driver Balasaheb Kamble was declared dead on arrival at a Sholapur hospital.
Rajesh Bidkar, the Star Majha cameraman in the vehicle, sustained injuries and his condition was critical, said one of his colleagues.
Chapalgaonkar is survived by his wife, Rupa, also a television journalist with TV9 in Pune, and two sons - Param, 8, and Veer, 4.
Attached to the media for over 16 years, Chapalgaonkar worked in Maharashtra Times and Lokmat newspapers. Six years ago, he switched over to television journalism and joined Star News before shifting to Star Majha.
