a day ago
'His Body Is Reduced To A Skeleton': At Ahmedabad Hospital, Families Wait In Agony For Closure
Last Updated:
As per government officials, 80 doctors have been pressed into service just to complete the post mortem in time and reduce the ordeal for the families
Outside the post-mortem wing of Ahmedabad's civil hospital, the pavement has barely any space to walk as family members—from Patan, Banaskantha, and outside the state—endure an endless wait to take the remains of their loved ones home.
More than 250 bodies have been brought to the hospital's post-mortem wing since Thursday when a London-borne Air India flight crashed just minutes after taking off, killing 241 passengers while one miraculously survived. As per government officials, 80 doctors have been pressed into service just to complete the postmortem in time and reduce the ordeal for the families. Yet, so far, only five families have matched with the DNA samples recovered, and the bodies have been handed over.
For most others, like the Patni family, the wait for closure is endless. Suresh Bhai Patni can't stop his tears. He lost his 15-year-old son Akash to the crash, while his wife has 50 per cent burns.
'His body has been reduced to a skeleton. Only some bones remain. And even that I don't know when I will get," Patni sobs.
Akash, a Class 8 student, had come to his mother's tea stall to give her a tiffin box for lunch. He was resting at their mobile tea shop outside the medical college when the wing of the crashed aircraft landed a few meters away. Before anyone could react, a ball of flames engulfed Akash. His mother Sita Ben suffered burns on her limbs while trying to save their son.
'How do I tell her about Aakash? She will die on the hospital bed itself. Doctors give me hope that they might be able to save her," Patni tells News18.
A few steps away, Pralhad Bhai sits exhausted. He has gone from hospital to hospital, agency to agency since Thursday night, looking for his wife Sarla and daughter Aadya.
'Sarla used to cook rotis at the doctor's mess. Aadya had accompanied her. I have no news of them since the plane crashed into the mess," he tells News18. 'I have given my blood sample here now. I don't know who they will match it with," a dejected Pralhad said.
First Published:
June 13, 2025, 14:53 IST
