Mumbai: The Tata Group pledged Rs 1 crore to each family devastated by the crash of Air India Flight AI171 near Ahmedabad. In addition to the payouts, the conglomerate promised to fund medical care for survivors and to help local communities rebuild.
Hours earlier, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner destined for London had plummeted into the Meghani Nagar neighbourhood just moments after taking off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. The accident occurred at 1:38 p.m. and claimed well over 200 lives, including passengers, crew members, and residents struck on the ground.
N. Chandrasekaran, Chairman of Tata Sons, communicated the pledge through a post on X, stressing that the group feels a deep responsibility for those thrown into sudden grief. Though official casualty numbers are still being tallied, the compensation will extend to every family confirmed lost in the disaster.
The aircraft hit left the BJ Medical College hostel structurally unsound, and the Tata conglomerate has vowed to help repair it. Three medical students from the college died at the scene, and forty-five other young men and women were numbered among the injured before lunchtime was even over.
Chandrasekaran spoke for the group when he said he still could not fathom the horror of Flight 171. Gasping for words, he permitted only this: our sorrow is heavy; our prayerful thoughts rest with the families who must now bury a child.
Relief does not stop at money, and Air India began ferrying relatives from Delhi and Mumbai to Ahmedabad on the night of June 12. We have established a trunk line, 1800 5691 444 for callers inside India and +91 8062779200 for those abroad, and are staffing it around the clock.
Ahmedabad Police Commissioner G.S. Malik confirmed that Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, seated in 11A, is the lone survivor still able to speak. An Indian Army detail, buoyed by NDRF, CRPF, and local fire brigades, continues sifting through wreckage as the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau hunts for clues; minutes before contact was lost, the pilot issued a brief mayday.
Tata’s quick mobilisation after the Ahmedabad crash reflects a corporate culture that still believes in answering community distress calls even when the balance sheets are thin.
A heavy air accident probe now sifts through wreckage and witness statements, trying to identify the single failure that triggered one of the deadliest plane crashes in independent India’s history.