Karipur air crash survivors, victims's kin fund new building for health centre
The Nediyiruppu Family Health Centre, at Chirayil Chungam near the Karipur airport, was operating in a dilapidated building.
The Nediyiruppu Family Health Centre, at Chirayil Chungam near the Karipur airport, was operating in a dilapidated building.
The Nediyiruppu Family Health Centre, at Chirayil Chungam near the Karipur airport, was operating in a dilapidated building.
Malappuram: Survivors and relatives of the victims of the Karippur air crash have dedicated a new building for the Nediyiruppu Family Health Centre (FHC), at Chirayil Chungam near the airport, to the local community as a token of gratitude for their courageous and selfless rescue efforts during the tragedy.
The Karippur Flight Crash Charity Foundation of Passengers and Families, formed by survivors and bereaved families, funded the construction using part of the compensation they received. The existing health centre had been operating from an old building, and the new facility will now offer improved services. The newly constructed building is scheduled to be inaugurated by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in the first week of September.
The tragic accident occurred on August 7, 2020, at approximately 7.30 pm, when an Air India flight returning from Dubai skidded off the runway at Karippur airport. Twenty-one people lost their lives, while 168 survived; among the survivors, 65 are still undergoing treatment. Compensation ranged from ₹12 lakh to ₹7.5 crore; around ₹30 lakh from this pool was used to construct the health centre.
“The rescue operation by the local residents was extraordinary and carried out with utmost professionalism,” said Abdurahman Edakkuni, chairman of the Trust. “The death toll could have been higher had it not for their timely intervention. The crash happened during the peak of the Covid pandemic, yet the locals came forward without hesitation, risking their health. Despite warnings from experts and airport officials about the risk of explosions, they continued the rescue. This building is our way of honouring their bravery and humanity.”
The idea of constructing the building took shape when survivors visited the crash site a year after the accident. A charity foundation was subsequently formed to raise funds and oversee the project. Although the foundation stone was laid on the third anniversary of the tragedy, actual construction began only on the fourth anniversary due to delays in obtaining approvals from the airport authority and the health department.
“This might be the first instance in history where survivors of an air crash have come together to build a health facility as a tribute to local rescuers,” said Trust General Secretary K Abdu Raheem Cheeral. “The primary health centre near the crash site lacked even the most basic facilities during the incident. During our visits, we observed that a significant number of people, particularly from the SC community in the extensive NH Nagar settlement, rely on this under-equipped hospital. That’s when we decided to build a better facility using a portion of our compensation.”
The single-storey building includes outpatient consultation rooms, a pharmacy, laboratories, a waiting area, and a dedicated store room for medicines. The construction has been designed to support additional storeys in the future.