Probationary IPS officer dies in road accident in Hassan a day before reporting for duty

BENGALURU: A probationary IPS officer, Harsh Bardhan, who hailed from Madhya Pradesh, died in a road accident near the Kittane border of the Hassan-Mysuru Highway after his official vehicle lost a wheel and veered off the highway on Sunday evening.

The driver of the jeep Manjegowda was also injured in the accident. An FIR has been registered against jeep driver.

After the post-mortem of Harshabardhan’s body, ADGP Hitendra, DIG Dr Boralingaiah, DC Sathyabhama, AC Shruti and police officials paid state homage to the young IPS officer in Bengaluru. Sources said that Harsh Bardhan’s family members will then take the body to Madhya Pradesh by flight.

Harsh Bardhan was traveling from the Karnataka Police Academy (KPA) in Mysuru to the Hassan District SP’s office on Sunday evening to report for duty.

The jeep’s tyre burst near the Kittane border, causing the vehicle to lose control and veer off the road. The jeep was completely damaged and Harsh Bardhan suffered severe head injuries. He was rushed to a hospital with the help of locals. However, despite treatment, the probationary IPS officer succumbed to his injuries.

Harsh Bardhan was originally from Bihar, but was residing in the Rewa district of Madhya Pradesh. He had completed his engineering degree in DAVE Engineering from IET.

He had passed the UPSC exam in 2022 with an all-India rank of 153. Harsh Bardhan was a brilliant student who cleared the UPSC exam in his first attempt. He was part of the 2022-23 IPS batch and had been allotted to the Karnataka cadre.