Imphal: After 10 days of the ill-fated Ahmedabad plane crash incident, the mortal remains of the 21-year-old flight attendant, Kongbrailakpam Nganthoi Sharma, was finally brought home aboard an Indigo flight at Imphal International Airport on Sunday.
The atmosphere at the Imphal Airport was heavy with sorrow and grief as the lifeless body of Nganthoi was received by the grieving family members and friends with solemn respect and dignity.
Top officials from the state government, including Chief Secretary PK Singh DGP Rajiv Singh, and MP Angomcha Bimol Akoijam were also present at the airport. They paid their final tributes before taking the mortal remains of Nganthoi to her hometown in Thoubal district.
“The whole state is mourning the sad demise of the two brave daughters of our state who lost their lives while performing their duties,” said Chief Secretary PK Singh.
While extending his deepest condolences, the chief secretary also assured that he would offer whatever possible assistance to the bereaved families in their time of sorrow.
MP Bimol Akoijam expressed pride in the two young women from the state, describing them as part of a generation that charts its own path, makes independent choices, and embraces a global outlook. “Tragically, their lives were cut short,” he said.
He further stated that despite the inter-community hatred fueled by divisive politics in the state, the two women remained friends and colleagues—offering a powerful symbol of hope amid the ongoing crisis.
Meanwhile, Imphal International Airport Director Chipemmi Keishing shared that after a long, sleepless night filled with grief and heavy hearts, their beloved Nganthoi Sharma Kongbrailakpam finally returned home, her final journey completed as she arrived at Imphal International Airport aboard an IndiGo flight. The moment was deeply moving. She was received with solemn respect and heartfelt sorrow by Team Imphal Airport, not merely as colleagues in uniform, but as a grieving family, united in silence and reverence.
“With bowed heads and heavy hearts, she was tenderly handed over to her family, friends, and loved ones, whose presence spoke volumes of the love they carry and the void her absence leaves behind. Time stood still as she came home, not as the radiant soul we once knew, but as a cherished memory held close by all who knew her,” he said.
“It was more than a reception, it was a homecoming of love, loss, and remembrance at the very airport where her dreams once soared. We welcomed her back with honour, with grace, and with the quiet strength that love alone can carry,” he added.
Earlier this week, the body of another flight attendant from Manipur Lamnunthem Singson of Kangpokpi district, was laid to rest with full honours.
Her mortal remains were flown from Ahmedabad to Dimapur and received by her family members before her final rites were performed on Friday.
The two flight attendants from Manipur were among the 12 cabin crew members killed in the ill-fated flight which crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad Airport on June 12.
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