Journo’s son ‘did not die by drowning’

BHUBANESWAR: The commissionerate police, which recovered the body of Manish Anurag Das, son of senior journalist Navin Das, from a pond here is pinning their hopes on a diatom test to make headway with the investigation.
Diatoms are photosynthesising algae, which are found in almost every water body. If a person is alive while entering the water, the diatoms will enter the lungs when the s/he inhales water in the event of drowning. These diatoms will then travel to various parts of the body through the blood. If a dead person is thrown into the water, s/he cannot breathe, there is no blood circulation and no movement of diatom cells to various organs.
“We have collected the water sample of the pond and sent it to the state forensic science laboratory. If diatoms are found in Manish’s body, we will match them with the water sample to ascertain whether his death was caused by drowning,” deputy commissioner of police Uma Shankar Dash said.
Though the police did not disclose the findings of the post-mortem report, the doctors, who conducted his autopsy reportedly told the police that Manish did not die by drowning. The Tamando police on Monday sealed a hotel in Patrapada area where Manish had attended a party with his friends on Saturday night. His body was found in the pond, about 3km from the hotel on Sunday.
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