Ahmedabad Plane Crash: Mess Worker’s Agony as Daughter, Mother Still Missing

The devastating plane crash in Ahmedabad has shattered countless families and served as a grim reminder of life’s fragility. For Ravi Thakur, a cook at the undergraduate mess of BJ Medical College, the tragedy has been deeply agonizing.

Ravi’s 2-year-old daughter Aadya and his mother Sarla have been missing since the Air India AI-171 flight crashed into the BJ Medical College complex. The crash, one of the worst aviation disasters in recent memory, has claimed 275 lives, including 241 passengers on board, according to the latest reports.

Ravi, along with his wife and mother, worked in the mess that caters to undergraduate students. On the fateful day, he and his wife had stepped out to deliver lunch to senior doctors at the nearby civil hospital. Before leaving, his wife had put little Aadya to sleep beside her grandmother in the kitchen.

Moments later, tragedy struck as the aircraft crashed into the building.

Speaking to the media, Ravi expressed his anguish: “I’ve checked every list shared by the authorities and searched hospitals—both civil and private—all night. But there’s no trace of them.”

His frustration was directed at what he described as "unresponsive" officials.

“All the missing students have been accounted for. Only my mother and daughter remain untraceable. The mess guards won’t let us inside. I suspect they may have gone down to the ground floor using the stairs. All we want is to look for them ourselves, for our peace of mind,” he pleaded.

Fellow cooks, who witnessed the horror unfold, said they were making rotis when the aircraft hit. Initially, they thought it was a gas cylinder explosion. But when they saw a fireball erupt, they knew it was something far worse.

Panic set in as the fire spread. The mess staff—a close-knit team of 15—fled the scene to save their lives. They have been serving food to students and doctors at BJ Medical College for over three decades.

Now, one of their own searches desperately amid the ruins, clinging to hope.