Strife-torn Manipur prays for safety of Kuki, Meitei cabin members
1
2
3
4
5
6
Guwahati: Two years after a bloody conflict between Meiteis and Kukis in Manipur left over 250 dead and scores displaced, Manipur on Thursday were praying for Lamnunthiem Singson, a Kuki Zo and Nganthoi Sharma Kongbrailakpam, a Meitei girl, both part of the 10-member cabin crew on board the ill-fated Air India flight.
Hoping against all odds for some positive news, families of the relatives of two girls from Manipur said with no official communication coming, all they can do was remain glued to television sets.
The families have tried calling phone numbers, but the countless attempts have been futile and in a desparate attempt have sent their members staying in Delhi to Ahmedabad.
"We heard about the disaster, but we do not know anything about her.
No one has contacted us and given us any official information. We are just praying," 26-year-old Lamnunthiem's brother Ngambom told TOI, pleading whether the newspaper had any news about his sister.
He said that Lamnunthiem made a call to their mother early morning just before boarding the flight, as she always does before reporting for duty, mostly on international flights.
Lamnunthiem, 26, from the Kuki-Zo community is an internally-displaced person from Imphal.
A year-long ethnic conflict that has left scores dead in Manipur, her family currently stays in Kangpokpi.
The other girl, 20-year-old Meitei girl Nganthoi is from Thoubal district.
"We called her up several times after receiving the news but nobody picked up the calls. The internet on her phone is also still on. However, we stopped calling her around 6 pm fearing it would drain the battery," Nganthoi's relative, K Khenjita, told reporters.
A cousin of the cabin crew member said her last message before take-off was, "I'm going to London. In a few minutes, we'll take off. We may not be able to talk for a while."
Locals were shocked to hear the news of the crash in Awang Leikai in Thoubal, as the news of the crash reached the Sharma residence.
Another relative said they were trying to get news about her and said her photos and videos are being widely shared.
"It is really hurting us all as we are trying to balance our emotional trauma along with the challenge to get news," she said.
Follow more information on
Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad here
. Get
real-time live updates
on rescue operations and check
full list of passengers onboard AI 171
.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
30 minutes ago
- Time of India
SSLC-2 records 27.8% pass rate in Karnataka
Bengaluru: The pass percentage in SSLC-2 exam, the results of which were announced Friday, is 27.8%. While 3.1 lakh students appeared for the exam, 87,330 have passed. Among freshers, the pass percentage is 30%. As many as 11,818 students appeared to improve their results, and 56% of them managed to secure better scores. With this, the total pass percentage of SSLC has reached 71.4%. Of 8,61,800 students who appeared, 5,28,263 passed in exam 1 and 87,330 in exam 2. The 2025 SSLC exam-2 was conducted from May 26 to June 2 in 967 exam centres. The evaluation was done from June 6 to 10. The pass percentage among girls is 35%, and among boys 27%. Rural students performed marginally better (31%) compared to urban students (30%). Govt school students did better than their counterparts in other schools. While 37% of govt schools passed, 20% of aided schools and 32% of unaided school children passed. Additionally, 28% of Kannada-medium and 38% of English-medium students passed. Four more students secured 625 out of 625, of which one student is from a govt school, said a press release from the department. Exam-3 will be conducted from July 5 to 12 for students who obtained a 'Not completed' result in SSLC 2025 exam-1 and exam-2 and for those seeking result improvement. Fee exemption is given for regular fresh students who received a 'Not completed' result in exam-2. However, candidates who take up exam for result improvement, private candidates, and repeaters have to pay the prescribed exam fee. Remedial classes will be held for exam-3 too, informed the school education department. In SSLC-1 exam, the pass percentage of students in the state was 62%. Follow more information on Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad here . Get real-time live updates on rescue operations and check full list of passengers onboard AI 171 .
NDTV
32 minutes ago
- NDTV
Reunion After 15 Years, Then Disaster: Couple, 2 Children Killed In Crash
The brother remembers it as a perfect celebration. All four siblings had gathered in Ahmedabad with their families to celebrate Eid al-Adha with their mother and it was a reunion that had been awaited for 15 years. That was last Friday. Less than a week later, the family's world came crashing around them. 37-year-old Javed, his wife Maryam, their five-year-old son and four-year-old daughter were among the 242 people aboard Air India flight AI 171, which crashed into a building in Ahmedabad on Thursday. Javed's mother, who is a heart patient and was slated to undergo a surgery soon, has still not been told that she has lost not just her son, but her daughter-in-law and two young grandchildren. Speaking to NDTV on Friday at the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital, where samples are being collected to carry out DNA tests to identify the victims, Javed's brother, Imtiaz, said the family is devastated. "He was my brother. He had come to Ahmedabad to celebrate a happy moment. Now we have lost four family members. Who is responsible for this? Over 240 people have died. Will we keep losing people from our families... The plane had just taken off and crashed in a few seconds, how can this happen?" he asked. Javed, Imtiaz said, had gone to the UK to study 11 years ago, met Maryam there and eventually became a British citizen. "Javed had come here to celebrate Eid with our mother. She has stents in her heart and another was supposed to be inserted in two weeks. We are four brothers and sisters and have not gathered together for 15 years. Sometimes two of us would meet, sometimes three. This time, all of us got together and met our mother. Everything was perfect, just perfect," he said in Hindi. Asked whether their mother had been informed about the deaths, Imtiaz's brother said, "She hasn't been told yet. She has heart issues. We have told her that an investigation is on, she has probably been told they have been admitted to a hospital." "There's a pall of gloom over the family. They had two small children with them. I am sure you can understand..." he trailed off. Wait For Body Imtiaz said he had given his blood sample to identify Javed's body on Thursday night. "I have been searching every hospital, hoping some mistake had been made with the names and they are there. We are being told the bodies have been charred beyond recognition, which I am not being able to accept. Only once the DNA report comes will we know... We are being told we will be given the report by Sunday, I wonder how they will do that for so many people by then," he said. Of the 242 passengers on the plane, 241 were killed. At least 10 people also died at the BJ Medical College in Ahmedabad's Meghani Nagar, where the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed.
United News of India
an hour ago
- United News of India
Air India accident shatters cabin crew member Irfan Sheikh's dreams
Mumbai June 13 (UNI) Having joined the aviation industry just two years ago, Shaikh harboured big dreams that were tragically cut short. The 22-year-old cabin crew member on the ill-fated Air India flight AI171 bound for London, lost his life in the devastating crash near Ahmedabad on Thursday. The Boeing 787 Dreamliner, carrying 230 passengers and 12 crew members, crashed moments after takeoff from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, killing 265 people in one of India's deadliest aviation disasters. Shaikh's family, based in Pimpri Chinchwad near Pune, is now grappling with the loss. Irfan's uncle, Firoz Shaikh, recalled how his nephew always kept his family informed about his flight schedules. 'When the news of the crash broke, his mother was devastated knowing he was on that flight,' he said. The family immediately travelled to Ahmedabad, where authorities collected blood samples from Irfan's elder brother for DNA confirmation of the body. Irfan began his career in aviation after completing a professional course and initially worked with Vistara. Following the Air India-Vistara merger, he started working on international routes, fulfilling his ambition to excel in the field. 'He had big dreams and was determined to succeed, but now all those dreams have been shattered,' his uncle lamented. Irfan's father, Salim Shaikh, runs a local shop, while his mother is a homemaker. His elder brother works in the software industry. The family had recently celebrated Eid ul Adha together before the tragedy struck. According to Air India, among the 230 passengers, 169 were Indians, 53 British nationals, seven Portuguese, and one Canadian. The crew included two pilots and ten cabin members, all of whom were lost in the crash. UNI AAA SSP
