In the midst of the devastating crash of Air India Flight AI171, which claimed 265 lives in Ahmedabad, one deeply symbolic and emotionally stirring detail has captured national attention: a nearly intact copy of the Bhagavad Gita was found in the wreckage.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner, en route from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, went down shortly after take-off on Thursday, crashing into a doctors' hostel of a nearby medical college. The toll included 241 passengers and crew on board, and 24 people on the ground, including several students. Only one survivor, identified as Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, a British national, escaped with minor injuries.
As fire crews combed through the wreckage, which had burned at extreme temperatures fueled by 1.25 lakh litres of aviation fuel, a copy of the Bhagavad Gita was discovered among the debris—its pages unscathed, and the text and images entirely legible, including a portrait of Swami Prabhupada, the ISKCON founder. The book’s outer jacket showed minor damage, but it remained otherwise untouched by the inferno that melted large parts of the aircraft.
Speaking at the site, Union Home Minister Amit Shah described the immense challenge faced by emergency responders, noting that the intense heat and fast-moving fire rendered almost all rescue efforts ineffective.
The discovery of the Gita has stirred widespread reaction online and offline. Images and videos of the holy book, shared by journalists like Sweta Singh of Aajtak, quickly went viral, prompting both awe and reflection. Many saw its survival as a symbol of spiritual resilience, while others viewed it as a coincidental but poignant reminder of human faith amid tragedy.
One rescue worker told Aajtak:
“Maybe it belonged to a passenger… someone must have been reading it. Despite the intense heat, it remained intact. It’s as if it has its own kind of protection.”
The crash is now being investigated as one of the deadliest in Indian aviation history, especially following the confirmation that former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani was among the victims. Investigators have recovered one of the flight’s black boxes, and early attention is focused on technical malfunctions, possibly involving the fuel or engine systems of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
While the nation mourns, the image of the unburned Bhagavad Gita stands out as a symbol of calm amidst destruction, and for many, a moment of grace amid immense loss.
