Nearly a year after the Air India Flight AI-171 disaster in Ahmedabad, Gujarat Director General of Police (DGP) GS Malik has detailed the extensive rescue, traffic management and victim identification operation undertaken in the aftermath of India’s deadliest aviation accident in decades.
Malik said he received the first information while at home because the crash site was located roughly 200 metres from his residence.
“People called and informed me that there had been explosions and smoke. Almost immediately, I was informed through the control room that an aircraft had crashed. I left immediately and reached the site before 2 pm,” he told IANS.
Malik described the scene as “extremely painful”, with rescue personnel recovering bodies amid the wreckage. He said one of the first priorities was ensuring unhindered movement of ambulances and fire tenders.
“We created diversions and established green corridors for ambulances and fire tenders arriving from different parts of Ahmedabad. We knew Civil Hospital would come under pressure immediately after the crash, so arrangements were made there as well,” he said.
Malik said authorities anticipated the arrival of victims’ relatives and moved quickly to accelerate identification procedures.
“Nearly 200 police personnel experienced in documentation work were deployed to assist with paperwork and DNA-related processes,” he detailed in an interview with IANS.
Blood samples from victims’ relatives and biological samples from the deceased were collected and sent to forensic laboratories in Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar.
According to Malik, the first identified body was handed over to relatives by 8.30 am on June 13, less than 20 hours after the crash.
“Even in many road accident cases, the process can take 24 hours. Here, identified bodies were released in less than 20 hours,” he said.
The first victim identified through DNA matching was released at 3.19 pm on June 14, around 50 hours after the crash.
(IANS)
