The tragic incident that unfolded at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport’s Terminal 1 on Friday, where a portion of a canopy at the Airport collapsed, crushed a person to death. The deceased, identified as 45-year-old Ramesh Kumar, was an Uber cab driver for ‘pick and drop’ services at the airport. The collapse happened amid the heavy rainfall while Ramesh was waiting in his cab for passengers.
“Due to heavy rain since early morning on Friday, a portion of the canopy at the old Departure forecourt of Delhi’s Terminal 1 collapsed around 5 am,” a statement from the Indira Gandhi International Airport said.
The collapse occurred months after a refurbishment project at the airport was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The project is said to be one of his flagship infrastructure projects.
Besides Kumar, six others were grievously injured in the collapse. They hail from Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh and are aged between 25 and 44.
“This is Pure Criminal Negligence”
Ravinder Kumar, son of the deceased, calls this tragic incident “criminal negligence on the part of the government. He questions authority and asks for justice.
“It is pure criminal negligence on the part of the government when a place like the airport in the national capital is not safe. Where should people go? Railway stations or bus stops? Those are not safe either,” he said.
“My father usually worked night shifts. We had no idea he was caught in the accident. We got a call from airport authorities who told us he was injured, so we rushed to Terminal 1, but were told he had already succumbed to his injuries at Safdarjung Hospital,” he added, and The Hindu reported
“I Will Fight To Get My Father Justice”
The distraught daughter of Ramesh Kumar voices the days that her family will face after his tragic death. Ramesh Kumar was the sole earning member in the six-member family.
On speaking to The Mojo Story, she said, “People will forget us in a few days; we will face everything alone.” Holding back her tears, she added, “This is not an accident; this is negligence; everyone will forget us; we will suffer alone.”
Fainted, not Dead?
Reportedly, the police officials called the family of Ramesh Kumar and hid the truth. They called the family and said Ramesh Kumar had fainted and had minor injuries.
“They did not tell us the truth; they did not tell us my father was crushed to death; they blurred the picture to save the reputation of their airport,” said Roshni, the younger daughter of Ramesh Kumar, as The Mojo reported.
“We will file a case; why should we not? We will fight for justice,” Roshni added.
Reasons Behind the Accident
The union minister inspected the incident site and said that the structure at the Delhi airport and other airports with such structures across the country will be thoroughly inspected. The technical reasons and other aspects of the incident will be known after the investigation, he told reporters.
Meanwhile, a political uproar erupted after the tragic incident. The Congress party has blamed the incident on “corruption and criminal negligence” under the current government. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for inaugurating the faulty structure. They claimed that corruption and criminal negligence were responsible for the collapse and slammed the Prime Minister for failing to create “world-class infrastructure.”
Corruption and criminal negligence are responsible for the collapse of shoddy infrastructure falling like a deck of cards, in the past 10 years of Modi Govt, “On March 10th, when Modi ji inaugurated the Delhi Ariport T1, he called himself “Doosri mitti ka insaan…” All this false bravado and rhetoric was only reserved for quickly indulging in ribbon-cutting ceremonies before Elections! Our heartfelt condolences to the victims of the Delhi airport tragedy. They bore the brunt of a Corrupt, Inept and Selfish Govt.” Kharge added.
Trinamool Congress MP Saket Gokhale also expressed his shock, saying: “For election campaigning, Modi had hurriedly “inaugurated” T1 in March even while it was under construction. Why shouldn’t PM Modi be charged with culpable homicide? He’s directly responsible for the death of 3 people who lost their lives because Modi was desperate to campaign.
Taking a dig at the PM, The Trinamool Congress, through their social media accounts, slammed the central government. “A Glimpse into PM Modi’s ‘Guarantee’: Crumbling under his lies,” the TMC wrote. “The roof at Delhi Airport’s T1 collapsed….. which Modi hastily “inaugurated” in March, despite its unfinished state, just for election optics,” they added.
Jabbing the PM, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi, said: “This is BJP’s corrupt model of “take donation and give business” which has now been exposed. The question is, will the Chief Inauguration Minister take responsibility for this poor construction work and this corrupt model.
Reacting to the shocking incident, AIMIM Chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi said: It’s a very unfortunate incident. I hope that DGCA will take note of it and will find out how and why it happened.”
Meanwhile, Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu claims that the collapsed building was an older structure from 2009, different from the terminal inaugurated by the Prime Minister.
“We are taking this incident seriously. I want to clarify that the building inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi is on the other side and the building that collapsed here is an old building and was opened in 2009, the Aviation Minister told reporters.
In response to the Congress remark, BJP leader Amit Malviya said, “contracts were given to whoever sent the biggest kickback”
“The part of T1 that collapsed was opened in 2009 when congress led UPA was in power. In those days there were no concept of quality check and contracts were given to whoever sent the biggest kickback to the ruling congress Sonia Gandhi, who was then the super PM , must answer, Malviya wrote on X
Delhi Airport and Delhi Rainfall
August 2009: Roof Collapsed
In August 2009, the roof of Terminal 1D at Delhi Airport collapsed amid the thunderstorms, with wind speeds exceeding 90 kmph and a heavy monsoon. The incident caused operations to halt, malfunctioned systems, and inconvenienced passengers, as reported by TOI
June 2013: Waterlogging
In June 2013, heavy rain caused waterlogging at Indira Gandhi International Airport. The bad drainage system led to water flowing back into Terminal 3, disturbing passenger movement and airport operations.
September 2021: Flood
Delhi witnessed its highest rainfall in 46 years in September 2021, exceeding 1,100 mm. As a result, Terminal 3 and other parts of the airport were flooded. A notable disturbance was caused to the passengers at the airport.
