Odisha triple-train mishap: 29 more bodies identified using DNA samples
On Friday, 29 kin and relatives whose DNA samples were cross-matched will receive the bodies nearly a month after the triple train crash in Odisha.
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Bhubaneswar: On Friday, 29 kin and relatives whose DNA samples were cross-matched will receive the bodies nearly a month after the triple train crash in Odisha.
At least 81 unidentified bodies have been kept in AIIMS-Bhubaneswar containers.
"Crossmatch analysis of 29 bodies, around 15 of which had more than one claimant, has been received in the first phase, and the handing over process will begin today," sources said.
Initially, the state government posted images of the deceased on the websites https://srcodisha.nic.in, https://www.bmc.gov.in, and https://www.osdma.org. As it involved ex-gratia of Rs 15 lakh from both the Centre and the state, the DNA profiling was done to identify bodies after some were claimed by more than one family.
The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) has arranged for free transportation of the bodies to the destination by hearses/dead body carriers. If the relatives are unable to visit AIIMS, the bodies will be cremated at the Satyanagar and Bharatpur crematoria, according to the sources.
Meanwhile, the death toll from the train disaster has risen to 293 people, with one more injured passenger dying on Thursday at SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack. Manish Kumar (24), a resident of Jamui in Bihar, was admitted to the hospital a day after the train crash at Bahanaga Bazar station with multiple injuries.
The Howrah Superfast Express and the Coromandel Express were carrying a total of 2,296 passengers when they collided on June 2 evening after the latter derailment after ramming a stationary goods train. The triple crash killed 288 people. While doctors from Bhadrak and Balasore declared 211 passengers dead on the spot, the rest were either declared dead at different hospitals or died while undergoing treatment.
As several bodies remain unclaimed, the Railways has once again urged relatives of the deceased to come forward and provide DNA samples in order to establish their identity.
