Plane crash: DNA matching completed for 251 bodies, 24 handed over to families
Ahmedabad: DNA matching has been completed for 251 victims of the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad, with 245 bodies already handed over to their families as of Sunday, said Dr. Rakesh Joshi, superintendent of Ahmedabad Civil Hospital. Aviation personnel carry the coffin of plane crash victim Kongbrailatpam Nganthoi Sharma, a cabin crew member of the Air India flight AI171, during her funeral ceremony at the international airport in Imphal on Sunday. (AFP)
He confirmed that two of these bodies are scheduled to be handed over tonight and will subsequently be transported to the United Kingdom for final rites. Three families have scheduled for June 23 and one family will be handed over on June 25, he added.
Dr. Joshi said that among the 245 deceased whose DNA matched successfully, 176 are Indian citizens, 7 Portuguese, 49 British citizens, one Canadian, and 12 non-passengers. The DNA profiling was necessitated as the impact of the crash left most victims unidentifiable.
So far, the bodies of 20 non-passengers have been handed over to the families of the victims which include eight bodies, visually identifiable, that were handed over to their families last week, including four doctors, without the need for DNA matching.
The crash occurred on June 12 when a London-bound Air India Dreamliner aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, killing 241 of the 242 passengers and crew members onboard. Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, a 40-year-old British national of Indian origin, emerged as the lone survivor, defying the odds in one of India's deadliest aviation disasters.
The impact devastated a nearby medical college residential block, claiming several lives on the ground. At least 30 non-passengers have died due to the crash.
Dr. Joshi provided a detailed breakdown of the 245 bodies handed over to families across multiple regions and states.
A total of 175 bodies were handed over to families in Gujarat, with Ahmedabad receiving 70, followed by Anand (26) and Vadodara (24). Other Gujarat locations include Surat (12), Kheda (11), Bharuch (7), Gandhinagar (7), Mehsana (7), Gir Somnath (5), Rajkot (3), Patan (3), Dwarka (2), Jamnagar (2), Khambhat (2), Amreli (2), Aravalli (2), and one each from Junagadh, Mahisagar, Bhavnagar, Botad, Palanpur, Nadiad, Sabarkantha, and Modasa.
Outside Gujarat, 34 bodies were handed over across other Indian states. Maharashtra received 12 bodies (including 10 in Mumbai), Rajasthan 3 (including 1 in Jodhpur), and one each from Patna, Pune, Nagaland, and Manipur. Additionally, 14 bodies were handed over in Diu, the Union Territory. Ten bodies were sent to London, while 12 non-passenger casualties were also included in the total count.
Lawrence Danielbhai Christian, a member of CNI Church Maninagar who died in the plane crash, was laid to rest on Sunday, according to a person close to the family. His funeral service was held at 12 noon in the Ramol area of Ahmedabad. The 30-year-old had come to India to bury his father, but two weeks later, the family was mourning another tragic loss.
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