Junior doctors and relatives are struggling to deal with pain from burn injuries and recurring nightmares of a "fireball" that erupted when an Air India plane crashed into their hostel building in western India.
Yet, in a hospital bed, her hands and feet covered in bandages, Dr Shravani Varpe is preparing painstakingly for an exam next week.
The 21 year old requires medication for second-degree burns and cannot move her fingers, but plans to complete the exam paper with the help of a writer.
“I’m really struggling but I must hold myself together,” the physiotherapy student told The National. “This is my last exam, something that I have been preparing for. I can’t bend my fingers to hold a pen so I can’t write but I have to somehow do this paper.”
The BJ Medical College campus in Ahmedabad city reopened on Monday, 11 days after the crash killed 270 people including 241 on board the Boeing 787-800.
Only one passenger survived the crash, on June 12, while hundreds on the ground were injured when the plane smashed into the hostel canteen. The wreckage and tail of the plane has since been cleared and the area cordoned off for investigation.
‘We started suffocating’
The psychological scars Dr Varpe bears are far deeper than the wounds on her face, neck and back. Even small sounds of doors slamming take her back to the terrifying day Flight 171 ploughed into the fourth floor of the college.
“The trauma we have faced, we will never forget it, it’s there for life,” she said. “We are doctors and have studied this – we know the burn scars will be lifelong.
“My friends who are badly injured suffer from so much aggravating pain, especially when their wounds are dressed. They say they did not die but they are not properly alive.”
The terror she relives stems from the fear of being trapped in the burning building. “At first we just heard the noise, then we saw the burning fireball burst through the big window. It was like a cinematic view but in real life that is very dangerous to see,” she said.
“We ran outside but it was all black because the smoke had already filled the building. Within minutes we started suffocating. We were not able to speak as we had inhaled the gas. We could not go down because there was an extreme amount of heat that we could not bear.”
The young doctors eventually reached a balcony, found blankets that they dipped in water and managed to climb out of the building.
Dreams not ended
Dr Shamsheer Vayalil, a UAE businessman and philanthropist, has pledged Dh2.5 million ($680,000/six crore rupees) to families who lost loved ones and to injured doctors, while Air India owner the Tata Group had announced one crore rupees ($133,600) to the family of each person who died.
Dr Vayalil said his gesture was to honour the memory of four doctors, Manav Bhadu, Aaryan Rajput, Rakesh Diyora, and Jaiprakash Choudhary, from the hostel who died when the plane hit.
The financial aid to the injured, meanwhile, was to let them know “their dreams have not ended and they are not alone”.
Applauding the doctors for their courage, Dr Vayalil said: “Their resilience speaks louder than words. Support and encouragement will be there as they heal, not just physically but emotionally, too.”
The tragedy was deeply personal for the Abu Dhabi-based doctor who spent years living in hostels in southern India as a medical student.
“The images from the damaged hostel and mess hall brought all that flooding back,” said the founder of VPS Health and Burjeel Holdings. "It was difficult to watch. I saw myself in those students. That’s what made this tragedy feel so personal.”
Dr Vayalil said he understood the pain of the devastated families. “It is deeply painful to know that the first ones in their families to enter medical college lost their lives,” he said.
“They carried not just their own dreams but the hopes of entire communities. Their stories must not be forgotten. The hope is that their families feel surrounded by support and that their children’s memory is held close, not only by them but by all of us.”
First-generation in college
His words are a light in the darkness for the family of Rakesh Diyora, 20, who grew up in a small farming village, dreamt of being a paediatric cardiologist and was the first in his family to go to college.
The second-year medical student died when a section of the smouldering plane fell on him as he was eating in the canteen.
“In our entire village, Rakesh would have been the first doctor,” said Vipul Diyora, his elder brother.
“He was our future. My brother was so intelligent, he helped people always. What we earned from the farm we put into his education, we took out loans. But the main trauma is that he is no more. Everyone is hurting.”
The family of Dr Pratham Kolcha, 20, is worried about burn injuries to his face, legs and hands. The second-year medical student also grew up in a small village dependent on agriculture.
“When he saw the burns, he cried a lot,” said Jagdish Kolcha, his father. “I tell him, we have to face this and that God gives us challenges to make us strong.”
Dr Kapil Kachhadiya’s wife and eight-month-old son suffered first and second-degree burns to their face and limbs. The urologist was working and his family was in his hostel room when the accident occurred.
“It is a lot for a small baby to undergo but we have no option but to go through all the steps. They will need long-term care, skin grafting, laser treatment and plastic surgery that will take years.”
Three tips from La Perle's performers
1 The kind of water athletes drink is important. Gwilym Hooson, a 28-year-old British performer who is currently recovering from knee surgery, found that out when the company was still in Studio City, training for 12 hours a day. “The physio team was like: ‘Why is everyone getting cramps?’ And then they realised we had to add salt and sugar to the water,” he says.
2 A little chocolate is a good thing. “It’s emergency energy,” says Craig Paul Smith, La Perle’s head coach and former Cirque du Soleil performer, gesturing to an almost-empty open box of mini chocolate bars on his desk backstage.
3 Take chances, says Young, who has worked all over the world, including most recently at Dragone’s show in China. “Every time we go out of our comfort zone, we learn a lot about ourselves,” she says.
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Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Who has lived at The Bishops Avenue?
- George Sainsbury of the supermarket dynasty, sugar magnate William Park Lyle and actress Dame Gracie Fields were residents in the 1930s when the street was only known as ‘Millionaires’ Row’.
- Then came the international super rich, including the last king of Greece, Constantine II, the Sultan of Brunei and Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal who was at one point ranked the third richest person in the world.
- Turkish tycoon Halis Torprak sold his mansion for £50m in 2008 after spending just two days there. The House of Saud sold 10 properties on the road in 2013 for almost £80m.
- Other residents have included Iraqi businessman Nemir Kirdar, singer Ariana Grande, holiday camp impresario Sir Billy Butlin, businessman Asil Nadir, Paul McCartney’s former wife Heather Mills.
Hunting park to luxury living
- Land was originally the Bishop of London's hunting park, hence the name
- The road was laid out in the mid 19th Century, meandering through woodland and farmland
- Its earliest houses at the turn of the 20th Century were substantial detached properties with extensive grounds
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
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Cinco in numbers
Dh3.7 million
The estimated cost of Victoria Swarovski’s gem-encrusted Michael Cinco wedding gown
46
The number, in kilograms, that Swarovski’s wedding gown weighed.
1,000
The hours it took to create Cinco’s vermillion petal gown, as seen in his atelier [note, is the one he’s playing with in the corner of a room]
50
How many looks Cinco has created in a new collection to celebrate Ballet Philippines’ 50th birthday
3,000
The hours needed to create the butterfly gown worn by Aishwarya Rai to the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.
1.1 million
The number of followers that Michael Cinco’s Instagram account has garnered.
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Uefa Nations League: How it works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
RedCrow Intelligence Company Profile
Started: 2016
Founders: Hussein Nasser Eddin, Laila Akel, Tayeb Akel
Based: Ramallah, Palestine
Sector: Technology, Security
# of staff: 13
Investment: $745,000
Investors: Palestine’s Ibtikar Fund, Abu Dhabi’s Gothams and angel investors
Key findings
- Over a period of seven years, a team of scientists analysed dietary data from 50,000 North American adults.
- Eating one or two meals a day was associated with a relative decrease in BMI, compared with three meals. Snacks count as a meal. Likewise, participants who ate more than three meals a day experienced an increase in BMI: the more meals a day, the greater the increase.
- People who ate breakfast experienced a relative decrease in their BMI compared with “breakfast-skippers”.
- Those who turned the eating day on its head to make breakfast the biggest meal of the day, did even better.
- But scrapping dinner altogether gave the best results. The study found that the BMI of subjects who had a long overnight fast (of 18 hours or more) decreased when compared even with those who had a medium overnight fast, of between 12 and 17 hours.
