2 more bodies of pilgrims fished out

Tribune News Service

Mandi/Kullu, October 6

Two more bodies were today recovered from Pandoh and Larji dams in Mandi district. Of the 17 bodies fished out of the two dams in the past three days, 16 have been identified by the relatives of pilgrims of the Manikaran bus mishap.

Kullu Deputy Commissioner Rakesh Kanwar said two bodies were fished out today, one each from the Pandoh and Larji dam.

The DC said the bodies had been identified as Gurdev Singh of Bhagi Bander village in Bathinda district, Veerpal Kaur of Pakhokalan village in Barnala district, Kesar Singh of Makha Chalan village in Mansa district, Maninder Singh and Hardeep Singh, both from Joga village in Mansa district, Makhan Singh, Manpreet Kaur and Sukhpreet Singh all from Jagaramtirth village in Bathinda district, Gurpreet Singh of Makha Chalan village in Mansa district and Jaspal Singh of Jagaramtirth village in Bathinda district.

The DC said out of the 17 bodies recovered in the past three days, 16 had been identified, while necessary procedures to identify the remaining body would be followed and it would be cremated after waiting for another day.

Kullu Kar Seva member Rajinder Singh Gill said relatives of the missing pilgrims had arrived and the identified bodies had been handed over to the relatives by the hospital authorities after the post-mortem examination.

Ram from Jagaramtirth village was in all tears after identifying his niece and nephew, while the body of their father Balwant Singh was recovered on August 3.

A 52-seater private bus carrying 69 pilgrims from Bhatinda, Barnala and Mansa districts in Punjab had plunged into the swollen Parbati river near Sarari on the Bhunter-Manikaran road in Kullu district on July 23. The bus was on its way to Manikaran gurdwara when the accident took place.

As many as 23 pilgrims suffered injuries in the mishap, while only eight bodies were recovered from the spot and 38 were feared swept away in the gushing waters of the Parbati river. As many as 39 bodies have been recovered so far.

An intensive rescue operation was carried out by over nearly 600 personnel of the National Disaster Response Force, the Sashastra Seema Bal, the ITBP, the Home Guards and the police to trace missing persons.