Air India plane crash: UAE-based Indian doctor offers aid to medical students, medics

A UAE-based Indian doctor and philanthropist, Shamsheer Vayalil, has announced financial aid of Rs 6 crore for the families of medical students and doctors affected by the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad.Deeply moved by the tragedy, Vayalil will distribute the aid through BJ Medical College's Junior Doctors' Association.Announcing the relief from Abu Dhabi, Vayalil, founder and chairman of Burjeel Holdings, a leading healthcare provider in West Asia, and also the managing director of VPS Health, said he was deeply shaken when he saw the aftermath of the crash.His empathy for students is rooted in his own experience of living in medical hostels at Kasturba Medical College in Mangaluru and then at Sri Ramachandra Medical College in Chennai."I saw the footage from the mess and the hostel, and it truly shook me. It reminded me of the places I once called home, the corridors, the beds, the laughter, the pressure of exams, and the anticipation of a call from family," PTI quoted him as saying.The hostel's images struck a chord, he said, even as he added that no one expects a commercial aircraft to come crashing into that world, he added.Those students started the day thinking about lectures, assignments, and patients. Their lives ended in a way none of us could ever imagine. It hit close. Too close, he said.Vayalil's relief package includes Rs 1 crore for each of the four deceased students' families, Rs 20 lakh each for five seriously injured students, and Rs 20 lakh each for the families of doctors who lost loved ones, PTI reported.The aid will be distributed in partnership with the Junior Doctors' Association at BJ Medical College to ensure it reaches those most in need.This is not the first time Vayalil has responded to such a crisis. In 2010, following the Mangaluru air crash, he provided financial assistance and employment opportunities to affected families at Burjeel Holdings, a leading healthcare provider in West Asia, PTI reported.Air India's flight AI171 crashed into BJ Medical College's Atulyam hostel complex shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad's Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, reducing student residences and the dining hall to rubble. The London-bound flight crashed at 1:38 pm last Thursday.Of the at least 274 deceased, five were MBBS students.Tune InTrending Reel
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