"Still have hopes": Family of 21-year-old crew member in mourning awaits official confirmation

Thoubal (Manipur) [India], June 13 (ANI): After the unfortunate event of Boeing 787-8 plane, Air India flight 171, crashing in Ahmedabad, the family of 21-year-old Nganthoi Sharma Kongbrailatpam here remains in mourning, awaiting official confirmation from the authorities, anxious to know whether she is dead or alive.
Nganthoi Sharma, the middle child of three daughters in the family, was part of the cabin crew on duty on the flight.
Her father, Kongrailatpam Nandesh Kumar Sharma, said that he had not received any information from the authorities that could inform his family about his daughter's condition. In shock, the father holds onto hopes that his middle child might still be alive and pleads to the authorities to give them the actual updates.
"I found out through the news on mobile around 2.35 pm today. We have not received any information from Air India till now. I still have hopes (for her to be alive). Earlier, I heard that a few of the many people who were onboard had survived. However, I am hearing now that no one has survived. It depends on my daughter's and my fate," Nandesh Sharma told ANI.
In desperation, the father has appealed to the concerned authorities in Gujarat and Air India to provide them with information about his daughter, who was part of the cabin crew.
"Our family is grieving. Air India must provide us with some kind of information. We haven't received any information from the government or Air India authorities. She is my middle child. We have tried contacting her phone, but there is no answer. We must get some information about her, but that is not happening," he added.
Khenjita Kongrailatpam, the cousin of Nganthoi Sharma, joins the family at a time of grief and remains uncertain about the whereabouts of her elder cousin. She said that the family hasn't received any confirmation about the 21-year-old crew member but only knows that the authorities will release the survivor list tonight.

"We are devastated, but we haven't received any confirmation. So, we are hoping that she is well and alive. We tried to reach Air India and even the Trauma Casualty of the hospital. However, they say they will release the patient and survivor list after 11 pm. So, we don't have any update or confirmation right now," Kongrailatpam told ANI.
Nganthoi Sharma was merely 19 years old when she started working as an air hostess. "She had joined around April 2023. She was very young when she joined. I think she is just 21 right now," Kongrailatpam added.
Scores of people have died in the Ahmedabad plane crash after the Boeing 787-8, carrying 242 passengers, including 12 crew members onboard, crashed near Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport into a resident doctors' hostel building shortly after take-off on Thursday.
Miraculously, just one person has survived the deadly crash.
Ahmedabad Police Commissioner GS Malik told ANI that one survivor was found. "The police found one survivor. He has been hospitalised and is under treatment. It is too early to confirm the death toll, but it may rise as the plane crashed into a residential area," he said.
Air India confirmed that flight AI171 from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick was involved in an accident shortly after takeoff at 13:38 IST.
The aircraft was piloted by Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, a Line Training Captain with 8,200 hours of flying experience, assisted by First Officer Clive Kundar, who had logged 1,100 flying hours.
According to Air Traffic Control (ATC), the aircraft departed from Ahmedabad at 1339 IST (0809 UTC) from runway 23. It made a Mayday call to ATC, but thereafter, the aircraft did not respond to the calls made by ATC.
Immediately after departing Runway 23, the aircraft fell on the ground outside the airport perimeter. An official said heavy black smoke was coming from the accident site.
The Tata Group has announced a compensation of Rs 1 crore for the families of each person who lost their lives in the crash.
"Tata Group will provide Rs 1 crore to the families of each person who has lost their life in this tragedy. We will also cover the medical expenses of those injured and ensure that they receive all necessary care and support. Additionally, we will provide support in the building up of the B J Medical's hostel," N Chandrasekaran, Chairman, Tata Sons, said in a post on X.
Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu assured that a fair and thorough investigation would be carried out to uncover the cause behind the tragic incident.
"We are going to do a fair & thorough investigation, and probe why this incident happened. We still have to find out the numbers. We will go into depth about why this incident happened," Naidu told the media.
The Gujarat government has mobilised three National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams, comprising 90 personnel from Gandhinagar, to aid in ongoing rescue operations. (ANI)