LUCKNOW, Nov. 6 -- Three days before Diwali, grief engulfed the Verma family as the bodies of sisters Vartika and Dipika, who died in an avalanche during a trek to Kedartal in Uttarkashi, reached their Lucknow residence on Thursday morning. As the bodies arrived at their Gayatripuram home, cries of grief filled the house. Their father, Shree Narayan Verma, a retired agriculture department employee, broke down, struggling to come to terms with the loss of his two daughters. Originally from Sarai Pandey village in Barabanki, the sisters were the eldest children in the family, with their 25-year-old brother Atul being the youngest. "They were not just my daughters, they were my light, the most precious parts of my heart. Wherever they went, they went together. Today, both have left us together. I never imagined I would have to see such a day," their father said. The sisters shared a passion for trekking and had completed several expeditions across India and Nepal. They set out from Gangotri for the Kedartal trek on October 27, along with seven trekkers and five support staff. Their brother, Atul Verma, travelled to Uttarkashi with other family members to search for them. "We learnt about the tragedy through social media rather than receiving information from the trekking agency," he said. Vartika worked with a company in Gurugram, while Dipika was a graphic designer with a multinational company. A NIFT graduate, Dipika was staying in Lucknow under a work-from-home arrangement.htc...