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NDTV
a day ago
- General
- NDTV
Manipur Mourns Loss Of 2 Young Flight Attendants In Ahmedabad Plane Crash
Imphal/Guwahati/New Delhi: Manipur lost two young professionals in the Air India plane crash in Gujarat's Ahmedabad on Thursday. The families are devastated by the huge loss. Kongbrailatpam Nganthoi Sharma and Lamnunthem Singson worked with the Tata-owned airline as flight attendants. Both were in their early 20s. Nganthoi Sharma, a resident of Thoubal district, joined the airline in April 2023 after Air India selected her during campus recruitment at DM College of Commerce in the state capital Imphal. Lamnunthem and her family once lived in Imphal's Old Lambulane, but had to leave after ethnic clashes broke out in May 2023. Since then, her family has been living in Kangpokpi district as internally displaced persons, or IDPs. Nganthoi Sharma's father, K Nandeshkumar, and mother are in trauma and could not gather the strength to speak. Nganthoi Sharma was the second of three siblings, all girls. "It was her dream to become a flight attendant. We couldn't chat on video as usual due to the internet ban. But she messaged me while I was in school that she would be flying to London today, and that she would be unreachable," Nganthoi Sharma's elder sister Gitanjali told NDTV. "She said she would return on 15 June. I wished her a safe flight and told her we'd contact her when we get the internet connection back. Then we heard of the plane crash from an aunt on the phone. She said an Air India flight had crashed in Ahmedabad; the plane was going to London. This is how we confirmed it," Gitanjali said and broke down. Internet had been snapped in some valley areas after protests broke out over the arrest of an Arambai Tenggol member last week. "After completing Class 12, she enrolled in DM College of Commerce. She was very keen on trying for a cabin crew job. She cracked it in her first try; she was very happy in thinking about going to many destinations," Gitanjali said. Lamnunthem Singson's Family In Kangpokpi Devastated In Kangpokpi district, where Lamnunthem's family lives, a heavy silence cloaked Ngambom Veng amid a gathering of residents at the small rented house of the family displaced by the ethnic conflict. The community came not only to offer prayers, but to stand by a mother whose heart waited for a word, a confirmation, a hope that her daughter might still return. Lamnunthem's mother, Nemneilhing Singson, held on to the last conversation she had with her daughter less than 24 hours ago, "I'm travelling to Ahmedabad to report for duty." Her words carried sorrow and also the faint light of a mother's hope - that perhaps, against all odds, her daughter might still come home. Lamnunthem was the only daughter in a family of three siblings. Her father Lenminlun Singson died some years ago, and her mother single handedly raised the children alone. Today, the warmth of the community enveloped Nemneilhing as she sat in silent anguish, tears flowing freely, surrounded by neighbours, friends and strangers alike - all united in prayer. The Thadou Students' Association General Headquarters (TSA-GHQ) in a statement offered condolences to the families of both the flight attendants in Thoubal and Kangpokpi. "Lamnunthem Singson... recently joined Air India as cabin crew in 2024, and her untimely death is a great loss to her family and the Thadou community. TSA extends heartfelt condolences to both bereaved families and assures all necessary assistance to the family of Lamnunthem Singson and Kongbrailatpam Nganthoi Sharma's during this difficult time," the TSA GHQ said. The Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner carrying 242 people crashed immediately after take-off from Ahmedabad airport this afternoon, in one of the worst ever aviation tragedies in India. There were 232 passengers and 10 crew on the flight which was headed to London. An Indian-origin British national -- the passenger of seat No. 11A -- survived the crash. The plane slammed into a hostel for doctors of a medical college, killing several students. Debris had pierced through the wall of the dining hall of the hostel, with food still visible on some of the plates. Several videos including CCTV at the airport showed the aircraft flying low and struggling to gain altitude before crashing and exploding in a massive ball of fire at 1.38 pm. It was loaded with fuel since it was flying a long distance to London. Shortly after take-off, the pilot sent out a mayday call. There was no response after that to repeated calls from the air traffic controller.
India Today
2 days ago
- Politics
- India Today
Two Manipur women among cabin crew of Air India flight that crashed in Ahmedabad
Two women from Manipur are among the crew members aboard the ill-fated Air India Flight AI171, which crashed shortly after takeoff in Nganthoi Sharma and Singson Lamnunthem are among 12 crew members of the flight that was headed to London's Gatwick. The ill-fated aircraft was carrying 242 people, of whom only one survived, Sharma is a resident of Thoubal district. While Singson, who originally belongs to Old Lambulane in Imphal West, has been residing in Kangpokpi district due to the ongoing ethnic conflict in the Manipur has been reeling from communal violence between the Meitei and Kuki communities since May 3, 2023, a conflict that has left over 250 dead and displaced more than 60,000 people. Both Sharma and Lamnunthem's families have been affected by the to IndiaToday, Goulun Singson, a relative of Lamnunthem, said, 'Our family last spoke to her on Wednesday. She said she was flying to London. That was the last time we heard from her. She joined Air India as cabin crew in 2023. Due to the Manipur crisis, our family, along with her, was displaced and is now staying in Kangpokpi.'He added that the family remains in anguish, anxiously awaiting news about her Thoubal district, grief filled the home of Kongbrailatpam Nganthoi Sharma. When media teams arrived, emotional family members refrained from commenting. A relative quietly asked, 'Are you here for Nganthoi's death?' before declining to speak MLA Surjakumar Okram visited Sharma's residence and told reporters, 'We are still trying to trace Nganthoi. We are waiting for official confirmation from Air India and government authorities on her status.'Former Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh, calling the incident heartbreaking, wrote on X, "I am deeply shocked and grieved by the tragic Air India flight crash near Meghaninagar, Ahmedabad, this afternoon... This heartbreaking incident has shaken the entire nation. My thoughts and prayers are with all those on board and their families during this unimaginably difficult time."Air India, in a statement, confirmed that Flight AI171 departed at 13:38 IST, carrying nationals of several countries, including 169 Indians, 53 British, one Canadian, and seven Portuguese passengers. At least two infants were also on airline stated that injured passengers were being transported to nearby hospitals and affirmed full cooperation with aviation authorities in the ongoing Home Minister Amit Shah took stock of the crash site and met the injured as well as the lone survivor in Ahmedabad this said that almost all the bodies have been number of casualties are yet to be Reel
