A narrow escape Milkha Singh’s family

CHANDIGARH, Sept 3: For Dr Mona Milkha Singh, the daughter of `Flying Sikh’ Milkha Singh, it was a close brush with the ultimate disaster as she was `supposed’ to be one of the passengers on board the Geneva-bound Swissair flight which crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off Nova Scotia, near Canada, killing all the 215 passengers and the 15 member crew, after leaving from New York on Wednesday night.

Had it not been for the traffic jam that she was caught in en route from the hospital to the New York Airport, Mona may not have missed the plane, which ultimately proved to be a blessing in disguise, saving her life. According to a relieved Milkha Singh, Mona had been invited by her brother, Chiranjeev Milkha Singh, who is currently playing in an international golf tournament in Switzerland, for a week’s vacation with him.

“Jeev had sent her the ticket and she was very keen on the vacation as she also wanted to be one of Jeev’s supporters in the tournament. Her name was there on the list and we were very worried but she called this afternoon to conevy her hale heartedness. We wish to thank the Almighty for this. Her life has been saved only through His grace,” Milkha Singh said.

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“She first got a bit late starting from the hospital and was subsequently caught in a traffic jam. She got delayed and, fortunately, missed the flight,” Milkha further said.

For Mona’s mother, Nirmal Milkha Singh, it was not until Mona called to convey her safety, that she actually knew about the incident at all. When Mona herself, told Nirmal Milkha “that God had saved her”, Nirmal went to Gurudwara Nadha Sahib near here to distribute `prasad’.