Tata Sons Sets Up ₹500 Crore AI-171 Memorial And Welfare Trust To Support Crash Victims, Families

Tata Sons constituted a public charitable trust in Mumbai with a fund of Rs500 crores dedicated to the victims of the unfortunate accident of Air India plane AI-171 in Ahmedabad. The ‘AI-171 Memorial and Welfare Trust’ will offer Rs1 crore compensation to the victims as well as support for rebuilding the BJ Medical College’s hostel.

Just two days after Air India’s AI-171 crash in Ahmedabad, which killed 260 people, the airline’s parent company Tata Sons, which is the principal investment holding group of all Tata companies, had announced to pay Rs1 crore, or GBP85,000, as compensation to the families of the victims. Following the announcement, Tata Sons had decided to create a trust to disburse the compensation.

On Friday, the group announced that it had formalised and completed the registration of ‘The AI-171 Memorial and Welfare Trust’, a public charitable trust in Mumbai. According to the company, the trust will provide both immediate and continuing support to the dependents or next-of-kin of the deceased, to those who were injured, and to all others who are directly or collaterally affected by the accident.

The Trust will also provide aid and assistance for alleviation of any trauma or distress suffered by the first responders, medical and disaster relief professionals, social workers and governmental staff who provided invaluable institutional support and service in the aftermath of the accident. 

Tata Sons and Tata Trusts have together pledged to contribute Rs500 crores, with both committing Rs250 crores each, for the cause. This will include ex-gratia payment of Rs1 crore for those deceased, medical treatment of those who suffered serious injuries, and support for rebuilding the B.J. Medical College hostel infrastructure, which was damaged in the accident. 

The ‘AI-171 Memorial and Welfare Trust’ will be managed and administered by a five-member board of trustees. The initial two trustees appointed to the board are a former Tata veteran S. Padmanabhan and Tata Sons’ General Counsel Sidharth Sharma while additional trustees are yet to be appointed. 

“The trust will be funded and will commence its work in all earnestness after necessary registration with the tax authorities and other operational formalities, currently underway, are completed,” read a statement by the group.

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