Zimbabwe: Indian billionaire and mining tycoon Harpal Randhawa and his 22-year-old son Amer were among six people who died in a plane crash in Zimbabwe on September 29, as per a PTI report. The tragic incident occurred when their private plane crashed near a diamond mine in southwestern Zimbabwe after experiencing a technical fault
Notably, Harpal Randhawa is the owner of RioZim, a diversified mining company producing gold and coal as well as refining nickel and copper. Mr Randhawa also founded the $4-billion private equity business GEM Holdings.
The mining tycoon and his son were traveling in a Cessna 206 aircraft, privately owned by RioZim. They were en route from Harare to the Murowa diamond mine when the accident happened. The single-engined aircraft crashed near the Murowa Diamonds mine, which is partly owned by RioZim. All passengers and crew onboard died in the accident.
The incident took place on Friday when Randhawa and his son were flying from Harare to the Murowa diamond mine. The aircraft encountered a technical fault which could have caused the mid-air explosion.
The flight eventually plummeted into Peter Farm in the Zvamahande region and the four others on board, along with Randhawa and his son also died in the accident.
Randhawa was the owner of RioZim, a mining firm that produced coal, gold as well as refining copper and nickel. At the time of his death, he was also serving as the Chairman of the GEM Group.
