Dehradun:
At least 21 bodies, recovered from tonnes of debris in Kedarnath, were cremated today. This takes the number of bodies disposed of at the shrine to 140 since the start of operations over a month ago, police said.
The process of recovering the bodies from rubble lying close to the shrine was frequently hampered by bad weather and lack of equipment.
However, with a slight improvement in the weather today, the exercise gained momentum at the shrine with the cremation of 21 bodies after necessary religious rituals and completion of other formalities like their DNA sampling, police sources said.
Police and NDRF personnel are jointly carrying out the exercise under the supervision of DIG GS Martoliya, they said.
Ornaments like rings, earrings, bangles and necklaces found on the bodies have been preserved to help their kin identify them, police sources said.
The total number of bodies cremated in the entire Kedar valley since the start of operations has risen to 215.
Around a thousand were killed in the devastating floods, landslides and cloudbursts in the state on June 16 this year.