Ahmedabad: DNA testing has confirmed the death of former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani in the June 12 Air India Flight AI171 crash in Ahmedabad, a senior government official aware of the matter said on Sunday.
Former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani (ANI File Photo)
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“His (Rupani’s) DNA sample was matched a few minutes ago,” the official said while speaking on condition of anonymity.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner, carrying 242 passengers and crew from Ahmedabad to London, crashed into a medical college hostel in Meghaninagar on June 12, moments after takeoff. The disaster claimed 241 lives, including 169 Indians, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese, and one Canadian, with Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, seated in 11A, as the sole survivor with minor injuries.
The crash also killed several medical students and other people on the ground, as the plane ignited a massive fireball.
Rupani, 68, was traveling to visit his daughter in London. To identify victims, forensic teams are conducting extensive DNA sampling at a dedicated facility in Ahmedabad. Relatives of passengers, including Rupani’s family, have provided samples, which were matched with remains recovered from the wreckage.
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The process, ongoing round-the-clock, is challenging due to the crash’s intensity, requiring meticulous analysis to ensure accurate identification. Rupani’s final rites will be held in his hometown in Rajkot.
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The process, ongoing round-the-clock, is challenging due to the crash’s intensity, requiring meticulous analysis to ensure accurate identification. Rupani’s final rites will be held in his hometown in Rajkot.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who visited the site, said, “Vijaybhai’s leadership transformed Gujarat; his loss is profound.” Gujarat chief minister Bhupendra Patel said, “Rupani’s vision and crisis leadership were unparalleled. Gujarat grieves deeply.”
Air India and Tata Group announced ₹1 crore compensation for victims’ families and ₹25 lakh interim payments. In Rajkot, Rupani’s hometown, preparations for his final rites are underway.
Medical superintendent of Civil Hospital Dr. Rajnish Patel told reporters today that a total of 32 DNAs have been identified so far and 14 bodies have been handed over to their respective family members.
He is an Ahmedabad-based journalist with more than two decades of experience. His career spans business journalism and general news, with reporting across politics, crime, governance, public policy, business, industry, infrastructure, energy, ports, aviation, the environment, wildlife and social issues. He began his career in feature writing before moving into business journalism, reporting on companies and sectors including energy, infrastructure, pharmaceuticals, automobiles and real estate. Over the years, his work expanded to politics, courts, crime, public policy, civic affairs, the environment and wildlife. His reporting has taken him from government offices and courtrooms to factory floors, ports, forests and remote villages, covering stories that range from industrial investments and financial markets to elections, conservation and issues affecting everyday life. While many assignments demand the pace of the daily news cycle, others require sustained reporting over months and years to follow developments beyond the headlines. He started his journalism career with the Asian Age in Ahmedabad in 2002 as a feature writer and sub-editor. Since 2022, he has been working with Hindustan Times. Earlier, he worked with Business Standard, DNA, The Economic Times, Mint and The Times of India. His longest stint was with Mint, where he spent more than eight years reporting across multiple beats. During his career, he has worked in both reporting and editing roles, contributing to page planning, local editions and special editorial projects as newsrooms evolved from print-first operations to digital publishing. Early in his career, he also worked on media and documentary projects with an NGO and as a copywriter at a communications agency before returning to journalism. Away from work, he sometimes makes time for a pair of binoculars, table tennis, cinema and the occasional poem.
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Home/India News/Air India plane crash: Former Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani’s body identified
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