Bhubaneswar, Sep 18: The Odisha government has forwarded DNA test reports of relatives of four Odisha-origin persons missing after the devastating glacial collapse and flash floods in Nepal on August 26, an official said on Friday.

The disaster caused widespread destruction across several parts of the Himalayan nation, leaving 1,410 people dead and more than 6,100 missing, according to the latest figures. With several recovered bodies yet to be identified, authorities are using DNA profiling to establish their identities.

Two families from Odisha are awaiting information about their missing relatives. Sandeep Mohapatra and his wife Sidharthi Kumari Sahu, natives of Khordha district and settled in Australia since 2018, went missing during the disaster.

Similarly, Gunnam Saibindu and her 18-month-old daughter Gunnam Hareeksha, originally from Bargarh district, remain untraced. Saibindu’s husband, Gunnam Jay Krishna, works as an engineer at a hydropower project in Nepal’s Rasuwa district. He was at the project site when the disaster struck, while his wife and daughter were staying in a residential colony about 14 km away. The colony was swept away by floodwaters and debris.

DNA samples were collected from the parents of the NRI couple and Saibindu’s relatives. The reports have been sent to the Indian Embassy in Nepal and Nepalese authorities for matching with unidentified bodies.

Officials said the families will be informed if a DNA match is established. Meanwhile, 13,756 people have been rescued from the affected areas.

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