FOUR days after the horrific crash of an Air India plane claimed 270 lives, 119 victims have so far been identified through DNA matching and 76 bodies, including that of former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, were handed over to their families, officials said on Monday. An official expressed hope that the DNA profiling all the victims will be completed by either Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning. Rupani was among the 242 passengers and crew members on board the London-bound Air India flight AI-171 that crashed in Ahmedabad on June 12. His mortal remains were handed over to his wife Anjali Rupani and other family members at the city civil hospital. Authorities are carrying out DNA tests to establish the identity of the victims as many bodies were charred beyond recognition or damaged. “Till Monday evening, 119 DNA samples have been matched, and 76 bodies have already been handed over to the respective families.

 

These deceased were from different parts of Gujarat and Rajasthan,” Medical Superintendent of Ahmedabad Civil Hospital Dr Rakesh Joshi told reporters. He expressed hope that the DNA profiling all the victims will be completed by either on Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning. He urged the grief-stricken kin of the victims to not panic over the time-consuming process of matching DNA samples with mortal remains. “We are trying our best to finish this process as soon as possible. Some are complaining that the results have not come even after 72 hours. I appeal to them not to panic because this is a very important process with legal implications. We will call them as soon as results arrive,” Joshi asserted. Ahmedabad Civil Hospital authorities had said on Sunday that samples of 250 victims, including persons on board the ill-fated flight as well as those killed on the ground, had been collected for identification.

 

 

OFFICIALS investigating the Air India plane crash here have confirmed the Cockpit Voice Recorder has been found, a crucial discovery to help ascertain the possible cause of the accident that killed 270 persons, including 241 on board. Earlier, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) had confirmed that only the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) of the ill-fated plane was found. The officials confirmed the recovery of black boxes to P K Mishra, the Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who on Sunday inspected the site where the Air India plane crashed in Ahmedabad on June 12 and also visited the civil hospital where the injured persons are undergoing treatment. Mishra chaired a high-level review meeting at the Circuit House here and discussed the ongoing relief, rescue and investigation efforts with senior officials from the central and State Governments, AAIB and the Airports Authority of India, an official release on Sunday said.

 

The AAIB has launched a detailed investigation, and the US National Transportation Safety Board is conducting a parallel probe under international protocols, as the aircraft was American-made, the release stated. “Officials confirmed to Dr Mishra that the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) have been located and secured,” it said. With the finding of both black boxes of the plane, it would be easy for investigators to ascertain the cause of the crash. All but one of the 242 passengers and crew on board the Boeing 787-8(AI 171) and another 29 persons, including five MBBS students, on the ground were killed when the London-bound aircraft crashed into the nearby campus of a medical college in Meghaninagar area and burst into flames, moments after it took off from the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. Mishra reviewed the accident site near the B J Medical College in Meghaninagar, where senior officials from the State Government, AAIB and Airports Authority of India briefed him on the sequence of events and immediate response measures, the release said. During his visit to the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital, he met the bereaved families, observed the DNA sample matching, and directed authorities to provide full assistance, ensuring a seamless and compassionate process, it said.

 

 

 

FORMER Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, who died in the Air India plane crash, was cremated with full State honours at Rajkot on Monday night with politicians led by Union Home Minister Amit Shah paying him floral tributes ahead of the last rites. Thousands of people gathered along the entire route of the funeral procession to give a poignant send-off to the late BJP leader at his hometown, Rajkot. Rupani was accorded a 21-gun salute as a mark of respect to the departed leader. , where his mortal remains were flown from Ahmedabad four days after the tragedy. The funeral was held at a crematorium with full State honours and Rupani was accorded a 21-gun salute as a mark of respect to the departed leader. Amid outpouring of emotions and slogan shouting, people stood on both sides of the road as Rupani’s mortal remains were brought from the airport to his residence in Rajkot, and from there to the crematorium, a journey stretching to several kilometres in a flower-bedecked vehicle. The Gujarat Government had announced a one-day State mourning on Monday in memory of the former CM. Shah, Union Jal Shakti Minister and Gujarat BJP president CR Paatil, Governor Acharya Devvrat, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel were among senior national and state Bharatiya Janata Party leaders and dignitaries who offered their floral tributes to Rupani at his residence.