The dead bodies of all the victims of Havelian plane crash have been handed over to their relatives, except the three foreigners, as the identification process of the dead bodies has been completed on Friday.
Talking to media here at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD) Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said that the dead bodies of all the victims of the ill-fated plane have been identified.
He said that the dead bodies of all the Pakistanis have been handed over to their heirs except the three foreigners, however, he added they are in close contact with the relevant embassies for handing over their dead bodies to their relatives.
Dr Tariq Fazal said that Rs 5.5 million support money, including insurance, will be given to the survivors of each victim.
The identification process of plane crash victims was supposed to be completed by December 17; however, it was completed earlier because of the hard work of the PIMS doctors and the forensic experts.
The minister said that 14 dead bodies were identified on Friday, of which 12 dead bodies belonged to Chitral, while one each from Peshawar and Rawalpindi.
All arrangements were made to send the 12 dead bodies and their relatives through C-130; however, due to cloudy weather they could not be sent, the minister added. Shamshad Begum’s dead body was handed over to her relatives, while the remaining 11 dead bodies and their relatives would be sent through C130 jet tomorrow.
A senior official in CADD ministry told Pakistan Today that Abid Qaiser’s body, who was a resident of Peshawar, was handed over to his relatives and another victim Asim Waqas’ body, who was a resident of Rawalpindi, has also been handed over to his heirs.
He said that relatives of Chinese national Han Quiang have already reached Pakistan; however, relatives of two Austrian nationals Herald Kessler and Herwing Eichelbenger have yet to reach Pakistan.
On the other hand, he said, the ministry was in contact with the concerned embassies so as to hand over them to their relatives.
The official said that Austrian nationals were identified through blood samples of their relatives who sent those through their embassy.
Dr Tariq appreciated the PIMS administration and forensic team, who he said played an appreciable role in providing the best services to the family members of victims, besides completing identification procedure in a timely manner.
He said that it was a hard time for family members of victims, but the government tried its best to give maximum relief to them.
To a question, he said, investigation of the tragic plane crash incident is underway and international experts were also assisting in the probe, adding that the responsible would be brought to justice.
-Clearance of ATR engines lies with PIA, says CAA-
On the other hand, Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has said that it is “doing its best to assist” Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) in evaluating the current condition of its ATR aircraft fleet, and the final decision lies with PIA and the original manufacturers (OEM) of the aircraft to determine whether its engines are cleared for operation or not.
CAA Deputy Director General Nadeem Sharif Pasha stated in the letter, sent to PIA and dated December 13, that though the shakedown inspections of all ATR aircraft are underway, the “inspections of internal conditions of ATR engines is beyond our (CAA) scope”.
He stated that “significant observations” were made when the technical records of all aircraft were reviewed.
“The results of audits conducted by airworthiness field offices are indicating shortcomings in maintenance, quality assurance and Airworthiness Management System of PIAC,” the letter added.
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