Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, June 13: The Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Ahmedabad on Friday morning and took a round of the areas where the debris of the crashed Air India flight lay scattered in Meghaninagar locality adjacent to the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport.
Mr Modi pledged full government support for the families of the victims and called for a thorough probe into the incident. He also met the lone survivor, Indian-origin British national Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, at the civil hospital where he is receiving treatment for injuries sustained in the crash.
Mr Modi also met British High Commissioner Lindy Cameron, as British investigators are working with Indian officials to determine the cause of the plane crash.
The UK’s Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) formally offered its assistance, and the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced it would send a team of investigators to India to support the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) India-led investigation.
India experienced one of its worst aviation disasters after a London-bound Air India flight crashed in Ahmedabad on Thursday, resulting in loss of 265 lives that shook the nation. Air India Flight AI-171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner (registration VT-ANB), crashed minutes after taking off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad. It was carrying 230 passengers and 12 crew members to the London Gatwick Airport (LGW).
As many as 265 bodies have been brought to the city’s civil hospital following the horrific crash, a police official said. The Central government has initiated an investigation into the exact cause of the crash, and an investigation team from the UK is also coordinating with Indian authorities.
Air India CEO Campbell Wilson, who also arrived in Ahmedabad on Friday morning, met Prime Minister Modi and briefed him about the steps taken by the airline after the accident. Wilson promised to provide all possible help to the affected families. The meeting between the two lasted for 20 minutes.
The Central government has set up a high-level committee to probe the crash. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) had visited the Air India crash site yesterday and ruled out any foul play, according to sources.
Earlier in the day, the post-mortem of all the bodies was completed, and the pilot, co-pilot, and one crew member aboard the doomed flight had been identified. Over 200 DNA samples had been collected from the victims’ families and are being verified against retrieved bodies from the crash site. Union Home Minister Amit Shah said an official death count would be given after the DNA analysis was completed, a process that can take 72 hours.
Anjali Rupani, wife of the former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani who was among the deceased victims, arrived in Gujarat amid an outpouring of shock and grief at his demise in yesterday’s plane crash.
Chaos ensued at Ahmedabad’s Civil Hospital as relatives of victims started rushing to the facility. Authorities appealed to the public to cooperate with the green corridor for the ambulance. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said he was in touch with his counterparts from the UK, Portugal, and Canada, whose citizens were among those killed in the plane crash. He expressed profound condolences and offered full support in this hour of grief.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) and other central agencies’ officials on Friday visited the Ahmedabad plane crash site, sources said. The central agencies’ officials visited the accident site, sources said, without divulging further details.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), under the Civil Aviation Ministry, has started a probe into the crash. The AAIB is responsible for the classification of safety occurrences involving aircraft operating in the Indian airspace into accidents and serious incidents.
The Life Insurance Corporation of India will extend certain relaxations with regard to documents required in respect of the insurance policy claims of the Air India crash victims. In lieu of death certificates, any evidence in government records of death of the policyholder due to the plane crash or any compensation paid by Central/State government/airline authorities will be accepted as proof of death, LIC said.
