More than 50 bodies remain unclaimed a month after a deadly train crash killed at least 293 people in India.
The accident took place on 2 June in the eastern state of Odisha when a passenger train hit a stationary goods train and derailed on to an adjacent track.
Some of the overturned coaches were then hit by another passing train.
More than 1,000 people were injured in the crash, India’s deadliest rail accident this century.
The accident site has since been restored, but many families say that they’re unable to find closure as they’re still searching for the bodies of their loved ones.
Shiv Charan, who is from the eastern state of West Bengal, has spent the past month living in a guest house in Bhubaneswar city in Odisha.
It’s located close to Aiims, a government hospital where the bodies are kept.
There are 52 bodies in total, and they have been stored in a deep-freeze container. Some of the bodies are in a bad shape, making the identification process even more challenging for families.
Mr Charan makes frequent trips to the hospital in the hope of finding the body of his brother Krishra, who he spoke to moments before the crash. But the agonising wait stretches on endlessly.
He says he has only been able to identify some of his brother’s clothes, but hasn’t been able to claim them yet as he is waiting for the results of the DNA test.
Like many others, Mr Charan too has sent his samples for DNA testing – a process that the authorities are using to identify bodies to ensure that they go to the right family when there is more than one claimant.
“No-one has told me when the report will come,” Mr Charan told the BBC, adding that he wouldn’t leave without his brother’s body. “I want his last rites to be performed properly,” he says.
Anzarul Haque, another victim, is survived by his wife and three small children. At his home in West Bengal state, his wife breaks down in tears often, as her husband’s body remains missing.
Haque’s brother and brother-in-law have been camping in Bhubaneswar, making daily trips to the hospital. They have provided DNA samples, and are waiting for the report.
“A month has passed and we have not be able to get any information about his body,” Mohammad Kareem, Haque’s brother-in-law, told the BBC.
The family’s hope of finding the body fades a little more with each passing day. And there are many who are in the same situation.
Last week, 29 bodies were identified with DNA reports, and officials are now handing them over to the families. This is in addition to the 52 still unidentified bodies.
Biswajit Sahu, chief public relations officer of East Coat Railways, told the BBC that “they are working cautiously to avoid any error”.
“Identification of next of kin is being done with the help of railway officials, Odisha police, Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation officials and Aiims staff,” he added.
Authorities say that as time goes by, it will become increasingly difficult to identify the bodies.
Questions are being raised about how long unclaimed bodies can be kept and what will be done with them if there are no claimants. Some have suggested mass cremation as an option.
But Mr Sahu says that no decision can be taken until the DNA testing process is over.
The horrific train accident on the evening of 2 June took place near Bahanga station in Balasore district.
More than 3,000 passengers are thought to have been travelling on the two trains, with reports saying both were packed.
India’s top federal investigation agency has been tasked with finding out what led to the crash.
Source : BBC
