Anxiety in Meghaninagar After Tragic Plane Crash

Nowadays, whenever an aircraft flies over Meghaninagar, an area located near the Ahmedabad airport, Mangilal Parmar, a local resident, is gripped by fear and anxiety.

This was not the case till a week ago, but everything changed for residents of localities near the airport on June 12 when an Air India plane bound for London experienced a rapid descent and smashed into a medical hostel complex in Meghaninagar and burst into flames, killing 270 people and leaving behind chilling images that will take years to fade away from memory.

People residing in crowded neighbourhoods near the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport are a terrified lot because memories of the plane crash and loss of lives continue to haunt them one week on as they struggle to overcome the trauma and go about their daily life.

While some residents are mulling to move elsewhere, some fear the crash may affect property prices in areas, which fall directly under the flight path like Meghaninagar and Asarwa, and also make homes unattractive for renting out.

For lower-middle class residents of Laxminagar, Omkarnagar and Saraswatinagar -- localities situated barely a kilometer away from the crash site -- the air disaster has only added to their woes as their areas already lacked basic amenities such as proper roads and sanitation.

"There are no proper roads here. Waterlogging and potholes make it difficult for us to walk (especially during rains). Now, this plane crash has added to our woes. Earlier, we had to walk only by looking down (to avoid potholes), now we have to look up also because whenever a plane passes above us, we fear it will crash on us," said Parmar, a resident of Meghaninagar.

Another resident came up with his own analysis about what has changed after the disaster. According to him, planes have stopped flying too low after the crash when an Air India plane, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner (AI-171), with 242 people on board, crashed into the complex moments after taking off from the airport. All but one on board the plane and 29 on the ground perished in the tragedy.

"As if the jarring sound of aircraft passing overhead was not enough, we now have to worry about planes falling on us. Every passing plane reminds us about that crash. Though one week has passed, we can't stop thinking about it. The only respite is that planes have stopped flying too low after that crash," said Arun Kalal, a local resident.

While some house owners fear property prices may go down, some are worried they may not get tenants for their homes as people may avoid these areas out of fear.

"I have heard some tenants are mulling to move elsewhere after the crash. Despite the area being in bad shape, people chose to live here because of low rent. But, after this incident, some may think of shifting. This could affect property prices as well as existing rent rates," said Gajendra, an auto-rickshaw driver.

Some of the local women claimed their relatives who live in other towns and cities are more concerned than they are.

"Fear still grips us whenever we hear the sound of an aircraft. Women are more scared because we stay at home all the time and see over 100 planes fly above us in a day. After that incident, our relatives keep calling us every other day and enquire about our well-being. They are more worried than us," said a woman.