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Nepal buries 229 unidentified flood victims in Chitwan
The Indian Express··29 Aug
Nepal authorities began burying 229 unidentified flood victims in Chitwan after DNA sampling and tagging. By Saturday, 233 bodies had reached Chitwan and only 4 were identified. India's External Affairs Ministry said 320 Indian nationals remain uncontactable after the Bhotekoshi floods. A Bharatpur building is being converted to hold about 250 bodies with air conditioning and dry ice.
Prism
What It Means For You
- Families of missing Indians can still seek DNA matches later because burial records are tagged to samples.
- Relatives arriving in Chitwan with photographs may not get visual IDs as decomposition advances.
- MEA's count of 320 uncontactable Indians keeps identification of remains relevant for Indian households.
What's Happening
- Bodies from Rasuwa and Nuwakot have been found as far downstream as Chitwan, Tanahun and Nawalparasi.
- In Pokhara, 102 bodies were moved for identification after local capacity of about 88 was exceeded.
- Remains there are kept at roughly 2 to 6 degrees Celsius for about 10 days to two weeks.
Why Identification Is Slowing
- The flood carried debris through the Trishuli and Narayani systems, so bodies surface far from last known locations.
- Police are using photographs, fingerprints, post-mortems, DNA and details such as tattoos and jewellery.
- Authorities caution that nationality cannot be inferred from the unidentified Chitwan burials alone.
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