Ahmedabad Plane Crash: Civil Hospital authorities announced on Saturday that DNA matching has been completed for 247 individuals who died in the AI171 aircraft crash on June 12. This number exceeds the 241 fatalities reported onboard the aircraft, which included 229 passengers and 12 crew members. The crash had a single survivor, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, who miraculously escaped, while several others lost their lives on the ground.

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So far, DNA matching has identified 247 deceased individuals, including 175 Indian nationals, 52 British nationals, 7 Portuguese nationals, and one Canadian national. Among them are 12 individuals who were not passengers.

Dr. Rakesh Joshi, Medical Superintendent of Civil Hospital, stated that 232 mortal remains have been handed over to the families for last rites so far.

"Of the 15 bodies whose DNA has been completed, three bodies have not been received by families as they await DNA matches of other family members lost in the plane crash. Six bodies have been prepared for being handed over to their families for the onward journey while families of six victims are expected to arrive on Sunday to claim the mortal remains," he said.

"Out of the total, 23 mortal remains have been flown out of the city, whereas the rest are transported to crematoriums or their native places by road."

According to the PTI sources, based on previously released figures, 60 of the 61 foreign nationals on the flight have been identified, with the identification of one British national still pending. All 12 ‘non-passengers’, believed to be the crew members, have also been identified.

Sources added that over 95 percent of the individuals aboard the ill-fated AI171 flight have now been identified.

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"Only a few DNA matches are yet to be completed. The process is taking longer due to the nature of the samples, which are highly charred, and extraction of DNA is difficult. However, the teams have managed to use the technology to the optimum and improve the detection rate significantly even in challenging cases," said a state official.

(With PTI Inputs)