Ahmedabad, June 11 (IANS) On the eve of the first anniversary of the Air India AI-171 crash that claimed 260 lives and devastated parts of the B.J. Medical College campus in Ahmedabad, the Gujarat government has drawn up a redevelopment blueprint worth more than Rs 547 crore to transform the disaster-hit site into a major healthcare, rehabilitation and medical education hub.

The redevelopment plan, accessed exclusively by IANS, envisages the demolition of structures damaged in the crash on June 12 last year and the construction of a specialised Paraplegia and Spine Hospital, a rehabilitation centre, a physiotherapy college, new student accommodation, a modern canteen and an advanced Food and Drugs laboratory.

The proposals cover the New Mental Campus in Meghaninagar area, adjoining Ahmedabad Civil Hospital, where several hostel buildings and a canteen were struck when the London-bound Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed shortly after take-off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport (SVPIA).

The accident killed 260 people, including 241 passengers and crew members and 19 people on the ground, making it one of India’s deadliest aviation disasters in recent decades.

Health Minister Praful Pansheriya said the government had decided to rebuild the affected area with a focus on healthcare and medical education.

“I pay heartfelt tribute to all those who lost their lives in the tragic plane crash in Ahmedabad. I also express my deepest condolences to the families who have been grieving due to this unforeseen incident,” Pansheriya said.

“The wounds of the tragedy will be transformed into a resolve for a temple of healthcare and a temple of education, creating a new era in healthcare and new hopes in education,” he added.

According to official documents, the New Mental Campus occupies around 1,71,100 square metres of land and presently includes teaching and non-teaching staff quarters, undergraduate hostels, married postgraduate hostels and a canteen building.

The documents state that the hostel blocks, canteen building and sub-station affected by the crash were constructed during 2015-16.

At the time of the accident, four married postgraduate hostel blocks housed 92 students along with their families.

Following the crash, temporary accommodation and food arrangements were made for both postgraduate and undergraduate students displaced by the disaster.

Under the proposed redevelopment, around 25,000 square metres of land at the crash site will be used for a Paraplegia and Spine Hospital, a Rehabilitation Centre, a Physiotherapy College, and hostel facilities for 500 students.

The project has an estimated cost of Rs 295 crore, including Rs 175 crore earmarked for the rehabilitation centre, physiotherapy college and hostel facilities, and Rs 120 crore for the specialised hospital.

The government also plans to build eight new G+7 hostel blocks for married postgraduate students.

The project will create 510 residential units adjacent to the existing Sopanam undergraduate hostel complex and is expected to cost Rs 192 crore.

A new G+1 canteen building with capacity for around 800 students will be constructed at an estimated cost of Rs 10 crore, replacing the facility damaged in the crash.

The redevelopment blueprint further includes a new NABL-standard Food and Drugs laboratory. The proposed G+7 facility will be built on approximately 3,100 square metres of land and is estimated to cost Rs 50 crore.

Officials told IANS that the laboratory is being planned on the lines of the NABL-approved facility currently operating in Vadodara.

Government records state that once the projects are completed, the campus is expected to emerge as a leading centre for healthcare, rehabilitation, medical research and medical education in Gujarat.

The latest blueprint represents a significant expansion of reconstruction plans first announced by the state government on May 27.

Health Department officials had then stated that TATA Airlines would contribute Rs 53.12 crore towards compensation for damage to the hostel buildings, the canteen, and the sub-station.

Plans at that stage focused primarily on replacement hostel accommodation for medical students.

A prayer meeting is scheduled to be held at the Civil Hospital campus on Friday morning to commemorate those who lost their lives in the crash.

Pansheriya is among the dignitaries expected to attend the event as the city marks one year since the disaster.

–IANS

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