Tragic Air India Crash Near Ahmedabad Airport Claims Lives

Air India Flight Crashes Shortly After Takeoff

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An Air India aircraft carrying 242 individuals has tragically crashed near Ahmedabad airport. The flight was scheduled to depart from Ahmedabad to London but went down just five minutes post-takeoff at 1:38 PM.

According to Ahmedabad Police Commissioner GS Malik, 204 bodies have been retrieved from the crash site. Additionally, 41 individuals have been hospitalized due to injuries sustained in the incident.

The police department has also published a list of 25 individuals who were injured as a result of the crash.

The flight included 169 Indian passengers, 53 British nationals, seven Portuguese, and one Canadian. Authorities are still working to confirm the total number of casualties and injuries.

The aircraft involved was a B787 Dreamliner, as reported by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation. The flight reportedly issued a mayday call to local Air Traffic Control, but there was no response when the control room attempted to reach the aircraft.

In the aftermath of the crash, all flight operations at Ahmedabad airport were temporarily halted, resuming after approximately three hours.

Dhananjay Dwivedi, the additional chief secretary of the Gujarat Health and Family Welfare Department, informed reporters that the crash occurred near residential areas, including the Civil Hospital students' hostel and staff quarters, resulting in injuries among local residents.

Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu stated that the government is on high alert and has instructed all aviation and emergency response agencies to act swiftly and in coordination.

Karnataka High Court Grants Interim Release in Bengaluru Stampede Case

The Karnataka High Court has granted interim release to the marketing head of the Indian Premier League team Royal Challengers Bengaluru, along with three others, who were arrested following a stampede outside Bengaluru’s Chinnaswamy Stadium. Those released include Nikhil Sosale, the marketing head, and three individuals from the event management firm DNA Entertainment Networks.

The four were taken into custody on June 6, just two days after the tragic incident that resulted in 11 fatalities and over 50 injuries.

During the court proceedings, Sosale and his co-defendants argued that their arrests were politically motivated and executed under the direction of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, despite the police lacking jurisdiction in the matter.

India's Gender Gap Ranking Declines in Global Index

India has dropped to the 131st position out of 148 countries in the World Economic Forum’s 2025 Global Gender Gap index. In 2024, the nation was ranked 129th out of 146 countries, down from 127th in 2023 and 112th among 153 countries in 2020.

Despite this decline in ranking, the report indicates that India’s overall performance improved by +0.3 points. The relative drop in ranking is attributed to the performance of other nations.

The index evaluates countries based on four key subindices: economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, health and survival, and political empowerment.

The World Economic Forum's report, released on Wednesday, highlighted that India has an overall parity score of 64.1%, positioning it among the lowest-ranked countries in South Asia, despite the absolute improvement in performance.

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