Imphal, Jun 22: Thousands of people lined up on both sides of the roads to pay tributes to Ahmedabad crash victim Kongbrailatpam Nganthoi Sharma, whose mortal remains were brought to Manipur on Sunday.
Sharma was an air crew member of the London-bound Air India flight AI 171 which crashed into a hostel complex in Ahmedabad’s Meghaninagar moments after take-off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport at 1.39 pm on June 12, killing 270 people, including 241 on board. One passenger survived.
“The moment was profoundly moving… She was received with deep dignity, solemn respect, and heartfelt sorrow by Team Imphal Airport, not merely as colleagues in uniform but as family in mourning — united in silence and reverence.
“With bowed heads and heavy hearts, she was tenderly handed over to her family, friends, and loved ones, whose presence spoke volumes of the love they carry and the void her absence leaves behind,” Imphal airport said in a post on Facebook.
A cousin of Nganthoi Sharma said that airport officials, family members and others paid floral tributes to her mortal remains after it was brought to Imphal airport aboard an IndiGo flight.
Her mortal remains were accompanied by her father and elder sister who had gone to Ahmedabad for DNA testing, she added.
The mortal remains were later taken to her residence in Thoubal on an open truck as thousands lined up on both sides of the road to pay their tributes. Her last rites would be conducted later in the evening, another family member said.
The mortal remains of another crew member from Manipur, Lamnunthem Singson, were brought to the state on June 19. The remains were brought to Kangpokpi district via road from Dimapur airport aboard an IndiGo flight from Ahmedabad. Her final rites were conducted the next day.(PTI)
