Gandhinagar, August 31: A ten-member forensic team from Gujarat’s National Forensic Sciences University has arrived in Nepal to assist local authorities in identifying victims of the devastating floods and landslides along the Nepal-Tibet border. With the rising death toll and number of missing persons, DNA experts are now working on the ground.
The team, led by Dr. Bhargav Patel, head of the Center of Excellence in DNA Forensics at the Gandhinagar campus, reached Nepal after departing from Gujarat on Saturday night.
Under the joint supervision of India’s Ministry of External Affairs and the Ministry of Home Affairs, the team has initiated the process of Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) in collaboration with local officials. This deployment aims specifically to identify unidentified bodies and assist families whose relatives have been missing since the disaster.
Through DVI, DNA samples from recovered bodies or human remains will be matched with samples from relatives of the missing. This will enable officials to identify cases where visual or other traditional identification methods are not feasible.
As of Sunday, the death toll had reached approximately 750, with over 3,000 people reported missing.
In Nepal alone, 734 deaths and 2,498 missing persons have been reported, while China has confirmed 16 deaths and 546 missing in Tibet. This disaster has posed significant challenges in identifying victims.
Reports indicate that Nepali officials are utilizing hospitals in several districts to secure and identify unidentified remains.
The scale of the operation has led to a shortage of facilities to store bodies, while the identification and DNA testing processes continue.
NFSU has stated that its Center of Excellence in DNA Forensics in Gandhinagar is equipped with modern tools and sufficient DNA kits for victim identification.
Instead of operating independently, university experts will collaborate with Nepali authorities to assist in the identification process.
The Ministry of External Affairs has established a 24-hour control room to coordinate assistance and provide information about Indian citizens affected by the floods.
Rescue operations are ongoing, with thousands of soldiers and police deployed in Nepal.
Search teams are facing challenges such as broken roads and bridges, continuous rainfall, and rising river levels. Reports indicate that over 900 workers from hydropower projects are also missing, adding another significant challenge to ongoing rescue and identification efforts.
As recovery efforts progress, it is expected that more bodies will be found. The NFSU team will continue to provide forensic assistance in collaboration with local authorities.
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