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Today marks one year since the Milestone Tragedy. On July 21 last year, 35 people were killed when an air force training plane crashed into the Haider Ali Academic Building of Milestone School and College in Uttara’s Diabari. Among the deceased were 28 students, three teachers, three guardians, and one pilot.
Out of 175 injured, 63 were students. Although the injured have returned to classes after lengthy treatment, most have not yet returned to normalcy. The young, innocent students who narrowly escaped with their lives still feel a void and agony in their hearts. While the bleeding of sorrow has stopped, the festering wound of that tragic moment, the inferno that descended from the sky, the screams, the grief of losing friends, and the horrific memories witnessed before their eyes still haunt many students.
Guardians report that injured students now show irritation, sudden anger, and many still shiver in panic and cover their ears when they hear the sound of an airplane. Most cannot concentrate in class, and some wake up crying in the middle of the night. According to mental health experts, this tragic accident has caused deep psychological trauma in children, which they have not yet fully overcome. Physical treatment alone is not enough; long-term psychological rehabilitation and counseling services play the most crucial role in bringing children back to a normal childhood.
Relatives, classmates, and teachers still mourn for those who lost their lives in the Milestone Tragedy. And for those who returned from the brink of death that day, life continues with an unknown fear. Even after all this time, the terrifying scenes remain vivid for many.
Although families received free medical treatment after the Milestone Tragedy, the victims’ families have not received any financial assistance from the government. The previous interim government had offered 20 lakh taka to each family of the deceased and 5 lakh taka to each injured person. However, guardians rejected this, calling it very limited assistance. In this regard, Sanjida Belayet said that a written application seeking an audience with the Prime Minister was submitted on June 17 by the guardians, but they have not yet received an audience.
On January 21, all affected families met BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman. That day, Tarique Rahman said that if he formed the government, he would ensure their rightful claims. Sanjida Belayet stated, “Despite a year passing since the accident, no local rehabilitation plan has yet been implemented for the affected families. Currently, the injured children are living subhuman lives due to burn complications, plastic surgery, and long-term mental trauma.”
In the written application for an audience with the Prime Minister, four demands have been made on behalf of the martyrs and injured of the Milestone Tragedy. The demands are: providing adequate financial compensation for the protection of martyr families and covering the medical expenses of the injured, and swift implementation of the High Court writ; arranging lifelong free medical services and special medical cards from CMH for the injured; granting state recognition and certificates of martyrdom to the deceased; declaring July 21 as ‘National Education Mourning Day’ and constructing a mosque in Uttara in memory of the martyrs.
Yousa Attends Regular Classes: Noore Jannat Yousa, a fifth-grade student, suffered 10 percent burns in the accident. She was admitted to the Burn Institute on July 22 of last year and returned home on August 11 of that year. Yousa is now attending regular classes. In an interview with Ittefaq, Yousa said that she once dreamt of becoming a pilot, but now, whenever a plane flies overhead, she gets scared and covers her ears with both hands, and no longer wishes to be a pilot.
What Students Saw That Day: Monday, July 21, 2025, started as a completely ordinary morning. Classes were ongoing in every room of the college’s Project-2 building. Young students sat in a third-grade classroom, dressed in uniforms, with bags full of books, notebooks in one hand, pens in the other. Dismissal was at 1 PM. The Air Force F-7 BGI training aircraft took off from BAF Base Bir Sreshtho AK Khandker at 1:06 PM. At 1:18 PM, it crashed into the Haider Ali Academic Building of Milestone School and College.
Everything changed in an instant. Students ran in panic, bewildered and disoriented, screaming, crying. Smoke and dust filled the school. The entire area was heavy with the cries and lamentations of relatives. One by one, burned students were rescued from amidst the chaos. The crashed plane was flung towards the staircase of the primary students’ building. The ‘nose’ of the crashed aircraft penetrated the staircase section of the building, and the impact of its two wings incinerated two children’s classrooms.
A tenth-grade student of the school said, “I was standing outside after an exam. Suddenly, I saw a burning plane hit our building. One of my friends died right before my eyes. I can’t forget that scene.” Hasbia Rahman Ajhra, an inter second-year student, said that they were in class during the horrific plane crash. She witnessed the deafening sound that shook everything, people burning, and the tragic cries of children—all with her own eyes. Now, the sound of a plane brings back those terrible memories.
Special Rehabilitation Initiative to Overcome Trauma: Several private and social initiatives have been undertaken to help students overcome this deep psychological wound and trauma and return to normal life. The Rotary Club of Banani Dhaka and Chuti Resort jointly organized a special ‘Mental Healing’ program for affected students in Pubail, Gazipur. In this program, students were taken away from artificial environments into the lap of nature, where they engaged in meditation, drawing, playing football, and open counseling sessions throughout the day. To commemorate their deceased classmates and transform grief into strength, saplings were planted at this healing event.
Remembering the Deceased, Praying for the Injured: A prayer and commemoration meeting was held yesterday (Monday) morning at the educational institution’s Diabari campus to mark the first anniversary of the Milestone Tragedy, remembering the deceased and praying for the recovery of the injured. The educational institution authorities organized this event.
The college’s Principal Jahangir Alam Khan said that students gathered there to remember their lost friends. They prayed for the salvation of the souls of all who died. They also prayed for the recovery of the students and others injured in the incident.
Accident Site Open to All Today: The educational institution has taken a two-day program to remember those killed in the incident and express solidarity with the injured. As part of this, the accident site will be open to all today (Tuesday), the Principal informed.
He said that Scout and Rover members would give a guard of honor at the accident site. Flowers would be laid in tribute to the deceased. A minute of silence would be observed. Prayers would be held. A remembrance ceremony would be organized. Additionally, photographs of the deceased, memoirs written by friends, and various messages would be displayed. Guardians will also be present at today’s event.