Vishwakumar Ramesh, the lone survivor of an Air India flight crash that killed 241 people on June 12, has voiced his profound physical and psychological torment, criticizing the airline’s response as inadequate and overly bureaucratic.
Months after the disaster, Ramesh, 40, remains “heartbroken” and confined to his home in Leicester, United Kingdom. He endures persistent pain in his knees, shoulders, and back, alongside burns on his left arm, requiring his wife’s assistance for basic tasks like bathing.
Ramesh’s younger brother, Ajaykumar Ramesh, died in the crash. The survivor describes his brother as “everything to me” and says he now sits alone, doing nothing but thinking of him, struggling to communicate with his four-year-old son.
The aviation accident also destroyed the fishing business he had started with his brother using “all their savings,” leaving his family without income.
Radd Seegar, a consultant and spokesperson for Ramesh, stated that Air India offered an initial emergency aid payment of 21,500 British Pounds, equivalent to approximately $27,180 USD. Seegar said this amount is insufficient to cover Ramesh’s comprehensive needs, which include medical care, food, and crucial psychiatric support.
They are urgently calling for Air India CEO Campbell Wilson to meet directly with Ramesh, his family, and other victims’ families. The goal is to have a “human conversation” rather than relying on an impersonal bureaucratic process to address the profound trauma experienced by those affected.
A spokesperson for Tata Group, Air India’s parent company, acknowledged their responsibility to provide support. The spokesperson confirmed that senior leaders continue to visit affected families and that a meeting between airline executives and Ramesh’s representatives has been offered.
Ramesh miraculously survived the crash of Air India Flight 171, which departed from Ahmedabad, Gujarat. He was seated in seat 11A, adjacent to an emergency exit on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, from which he managed to escape the wreckage.
He recalled seeing “bodies all around” after he got up from the crash site. While recovering in the hospital, he pleaded for help to find his missing brother.