A year on, no end to woes for Kozhikode Air India Express crash victims

While Kozhikode native Saifuddeen Padipatta Chalil is still under rest after a recent surgery for a leg fracture cased in the Air India Express crash at Calicut International Airport in Kerala on August 7 last year, his wife Fasalunnissa is still confined to a wheelchair due to a spinal injury, while their three children are recovering.

Similar is the condition of Malappuram native Abdul Rahman Kutty who is under rest after a recent surgery for an injury on his right leg, while his wife Muneera has already undergone three surgeries for multiple fractures, and two more are still pending. Their 12 year old son is also still under Ayurveda therapy.

Even a year after the AIE flight from Dubai under the Vande Bharat mission skidded while landing at the Calicut airport, claiming 21 lives and injuring 165 others, the condition of many families and individuals continues to be that of Chalil and Kutty. Rubbing salt to the injury is the delay in getting the due compensations, they lament.

Though the AIE has offered final compensations to most injured as well as dependents of the deceased, many are unhappy with the offers as their futures have been spoiled due to long-lasting injuries. While many passengers in the ill-fated flight were returning due to loss of jobs, many were well settled and even running their own businesses or working in established firms.

While AIE is currently bearing the ongoing treatment expenses, once the victims accept the compensation offer, the AIE would not be bearing expenses for further treatment. This has put many in a dilemma on accepting the offer as even surgical procedures are still pending for many.

An AIE spokesperson said that compensation offers have been already given to all the passengers and the dependents of the victims and most them accepted it, while some were on the negotiation table. The compensations are being worked out by considering all factors. Compensation of up to Rs 7 crore has been offered to some individuals.

Nihmathulla Abdul Majeed, who suffered a fracture on his left shoulder, said that even as the compensations being offered by AIE now is not adequate, many were forced to accept it owing to the acute financial stress they were facing.

Soon after the incident, AIE disbursed the initial relief of Rs 10 lakh to the dependents of the deceased, Rs 2 lakh and Rs 50,000 each respectively to the relatives of those who suffered serious and minor injuries. The accident victims are lamenting that even as then-Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri had stated that the initial relief would be 'over and above' the due compensations, the AIE is now adjusting it against the final settlements being offered.

Meanwhile, the cause for the mishap on the table top run way is still unknown, as the inquiry by Air Accident Investigation Bureau is still pending. A team headed by a former designated examiner S S Chahar was entrusted with the investigation. Though the term was five months, it was extended further owing to Covid situation. Tailwind and rough weather were stated to be the prima faice reasons for the Boeing-737's mishap that claimed the lives of both pilots also.