MUMBAI (AFP) - An Indian flight attendant who was pictured covered in dust and blood after the Brussels attacks, making newspaper front pages around the world, is under sedation in hospital, her employer said on Friday (March 25).

Indian airline Jet Airways said in a statement to AFP that Ms Nidhi Chaphekar, a 40-year-old from Mumbai, was in a stable condition and not in a coma as some reports had stated.

"We have spoken to the doctor at the (Brussels) hospital where Jet Airways crew Nidhi Chaphekar is under treatment.

"The doctor has confirmed that Nidhi is in a stable condition and not in coma. She is resting and under sedation for her comfort," read the e-mailed statement.

A haunting photograph of a dazed Ms Chaphekar covered in debris, that surfaced soon after two massive suicide blasts hit Zaventem Airport, became one of the most widely published images of the bombings.

The attacks on Tuesday (March 22), which also targeted a metro train in the city, left 31 people dead and 300 injured.

In the photo shared by millions on social media, the mother of two is seen in the tattered remains of her yellow Jet Airways jacket, missing a shoe and with blood running down her face.

Many online users criticised the publishing and sharing of Ms Chaphekar's photo, saying her privacy should have been respected.