2 months after Bhotekoshi flood, relatives still await DNA reports of missing family members

Ranjha (Banke), October 27

Two months after the Bhotekoshi flood, relatives of those who went missing in the disaster are still waiting for DNA test results.

Anlal Rokaya of Thapuwa in Nepalgunj Sub-Metropolitan City-20 said he had spent the past two months without receiving any information about the DNA test results of his family members who went missing in the disaster.

“We spent this year’s Dashain desperately waiting for the DNA reports of our missing family members. Since we have neither found them alive nor received their bodies, we have been unable to perform social and cultural rites,” he said.

Rokaya lost his 19-year-old son, Dipak Rokaya; his 53-year-old elder brother, Sher Singh Rokaya; and his 56-year-old sister-in-law, Bishnumati Rokaya, in the Bhotekoshi flash flood on August 26.

Dipak had travelled to Rasuwa to meet his brother and visit Gosaikunda, but the trip ended in tragedy.

Dipak was the only son expected to care for the family. His disappearance, along with those of two other family members, has left the family in deep distress.

“If they were killed, why have their bodies not been found?” Anlal asked in anguish.

“With the passage of time, we have lost hope of finding the three members of my family alive,” he said, expressing concern over the delay in receiving the DNA test results. The prolonged wait has added to the family’s suffering, he said.

Anlal had hoped to find out what happened to his son, elder brother and sister-in-law after submitting biological samples for DNA matching with bodies recovered by authorities following the disaster.

However, the prolonged wait has been painful, and the family has been unable to perform the customary rites.

He said the government must ensure that bereaved families receive clear information about the status of those who went missing or died in the flood.

“We have neither got our family members back nor received their bodies since the flood. How can we perform their final rites?” Anlal asked. He added that the family would perform the rites once government officials formally declared his relatives missing or dead.

Other families are also waiting for the return of their loved ones or, at the very least, information about their whereabouts.

Sixteen-year-old Subash Nepali and his younger siblings, 11-year-old Ashwin and nine-year-old Smarika, are desperately waiting for news of their parents, Aram Damai and Ujana Damai. The couple had travelled to Rasuwa in search of a livelihood for their family.

Subash said he was also waiting for the DNA test results of his parents.

Chankra Bahadur Buda, chairperson of Ward 20 of the sub-metropolitan city, said he had been consoling families affected by the disaster.

The local government is providing essential support to bereaved families and coordinating arrangements for the schooling of children who lost their parents in the disaster.

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