Bangalore, June 16 (IANS) The Karnataka police are awaiting the chemical analysis report to determine the exact cause of death of Kaiga Atomic Power Plant scientific officer Loganathan Mahalingam, whose body was fished out from Kali river June 13, a police official said Tuesday.
“We’re waiting for the chemical analysis report from the Forensic Science Laboratory, Bangalore, to find the exact cause of death of Mahalingam,” Uttara Kannada district superintendent of police Raman Gupta told IANS by phone from Kaiga, about 500 km from here.

“The result of the report is likely to reach us within three days,” added Gupta.

He declined to comment on whether Mahalingam, 47, had committed suicide. The scientific officer went missing June 8 when he left home for a morning walk in the Kaiga township.

“We don’t want to make any conclusion on our own. Let the chemical analysis report answer all the queries relating to Mahalingam’s death,” said Gupta.

The post-mortem analysis of Mahalingam’s decomposed body suggested the death was caused by drowning.

Police have registered a case of unnatural death under section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Code(CrPC).

Six naval divers from the nearby Karwar Seabird naval project found the body June 13 after the state police and forest guards failed to trace Mahalingam after scouring the 100-acre township and part of the 1000-acre dense Mallapur forest surrounding the township.

Mahalingam was associated with the training department, responsible for imparting training in routine operation and maintenance aspects to the plant personnel, which is essentially an educational and skill development function.