AHMEDABAD: Five days after an Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad claimed 270 lives, 135 victims have so far been identified through DNA matching and 101 bodies handed over to their families, officials said on Tuesday.
"Till Tuesday morning, 135 DNA samples have been matched, and 101 bodies have already been handed over to the respective families. Of these 101 deceased, five were not on board the flight," Ahmedabad Civil Hospital's medical superintendent Dr Rakesh Joshi told reporters.
Dr Joshi revealed that 12 more families are expected to collect the bodies of their loved ones soon, while five families are currently in contact with the hospital administration. Additionally, 17 families are waiting for the DNA analysis results to come out.
Dr Joshi also shared district-wise data of the deceased and identified: Ahmedabad leads with 30 deaths; 13 victims hailed from Vadodara, 10 from Kheda, nine from Anand, five each from Mehsana and Gandhinagar, four from Bharuch, three from Surat, two from Aravalli, and one each from Botad, Junagadh, Amreli, Mahisagar, Bhavnagar, Gir Somnath, Nadiad, and Rajkot.
Beyond Gujarat, four victims were from Maharashtra, two from Udaipur, and one each from Jodhpur and Patna.
The 101 deceased whose mortal remains have been handed over to their relatives belonged to different parts of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Bihar, Rajasthan and Diu, according to officials.
Dr Joshi emphasised that the DNA matching process is highly sensitive and intertwined with legal protocols, which is why it is being carried out with utmost seriousness and urgency. Institutions like Forensic Science University, along with state departments, local administration, health officials, and other agencies, are working round the clock to ensure that families receive the mortal remains of their loved ones as swiftly as possible.
He assured that as more DNA results are confirmed, the pace of handover will accelerate, reducing waiting time and bringing closure to grieving families.
Joshi earlier expressed hope that the DNA profiling all the victims will be completed by either Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning.
The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner with 242 persons on board crashed into a medical college complex in Ahmedabad moments after taking off from the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport at 1.39 pm on June 12.
While 241 persons on board the London-bound aircraft died, one passenger miraculously survived.
The crash also killed 29 persons on the ground, including five MBBS students.
(With inputs from PTI)
