Ahmedabad: An unknown Gujarati's family has written to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), staking claim for Mansukhlal Parekh of Jamnagar to be considered the real pioneer of aviation in India. While JRD Tata got India's first commercial flying licence, it was Parekh who is believed to have built his own plane - the first such successful attempt in India - way back in 1930.
"I have given DGCA documents to show that my father made the first aircraft in Jamnagar," says Mumbai-based Harshida Desai, Parekh's daughter.
"Tata appeared for the B licence for commercial flying in January 1934 along with my father in Karachi, a fact reported in the 'The Sind Observer', published from Karachi dated January 10, 1934."
Tata was 23 then, while Parekh was only 19. The B licence allowed them to fly across India. Desai is planning to set up a museum dedicated to her father in Jamnagar.
05/03/12 Sukrat Desai/Times of India
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