Farewell To Flood Victims

The massive destruction, caused by the Bhotekoshi flood on August 26, has plunged the country into profound grief. The search, rescue, relief and relocation work continues as the flood washed away thousands of people and infrastructure worth tens of billions of rupees. At least 1,367 bodies have been recovered as of Wednesday, but many of them are unidentified and only some of them have been handed over to the families of the deceased. Relatives of the flood victims have been submerged in a sea of sorrow. The agony of families of 5,132 missing persons has deepened as rescuers have not found them. For them, time pauses every moment as they pray for the safe return of their loved ones. But many of them have lost hope as the days and nights drag. Faced with a religious quandary, many of them have performed the symbolic last rites for the missing persons. They created the effigies of Kusha (Darbha grass) and conducted the death rituals in line with the Hindu scriptures.