AHMEDABAD: Three days after the deadly crash of an Air India flight outside Ahmedabad international airport left more than 270 people dead, authorities have so far identified 47 victims, including former chief minister Vijay Rupani, through DNA testing, and handed over the bodies of 24.
Giving an official update, State Emergency Commissioner Alok Pandey said 22 death certificates had been issued and bodies handed over to the respective families. To support grieving families, 22 special teams have been deployed to help them process insurance claims and avoid financial hardship.
He added that contact has been established with families of all 230 passengers, and relatives of the remaining three foreign nationals are expected to arrive within the next 36 hours.
Confirming the progress on identifications, Civil Hospital Assistant Superintendent Dr. Rajnish Patel said, “DNA matches have been confirmed for 47 deceased so far, and families have been contacted. Of these, 24 bodies have been handed over — including one from Udaipur, five from Vadodara, one from Kheda, eight from Ahmedabad, four from Mahesana, one from Botad, one from Jodhpur, one from Aravalli, and two from Anand.”
To assist the bereaved families of the victims, the state government has deployed dedicated support teams for each deceased individual. These three-member teams—comprising a senior administrative officer, a police officer, and a trained professional counsellor—are working closely with families, providing emotional, logistical, and procedural support.
“From 9 PM last night to 1 PM, our teams have worked tirelessly to match DNA samples. We are pleased to report that an additional 22 DNA samples have been matched, bringing the total to 42 matched DNA samples so far,” Gujarat Home Minister Harsh Rameshbhai Sanghavi told media.
As many of the bodies were burnt beyond recognition or damaged otherwise, authorities are carrying out DNA tests to establish the identity of victims of the horrific tragedy.
Providing updates during a press briefing at noon today, Dr. Rajneesh Patel said that the identification process is being handled with the utmost sensitivity and scientific precision.
"The handover of remains is taking place only after DNA confirmation to avoid any margin of error," he stressed.
All but one out of the 242 people onboard, including crew and passengers were killed in addition to at least 29 people on ground as Air India flight AI171- a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner en route to London Gatwick, nosedived minutes after take off, crashing into the students hostel of the B. J. Medical College in the Meghaninagar neighbourhood.
Amid intensified relief efforts, a high-level team from the Prime Minister’s Office arrived in Ahmedabad on Sunday to oversee the ongoing response.
The team, led by Principal Secretary to the PM, Dr. P.K. Mishra, will remain in Gujarat for two days to directly monitor rescue, relief, and investigation work.
Key meetings have been lined up with Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, Director General of Police, and the Additional Chief Secretary (Home).
After visiting the crash site, Dr. P K Mishra expressed grief and solidarity.
“We came here to witness everything ourselves, and it’s deeply saddening. There’s really no need to say much, everyone already knows. Everyone is heartbroken, and there’s nothing more to ask. But we listened to everyone, and expressed our feelings and solidarity with them,” he said.
