Mumbai, Sept. 16 -- The Maharashtra government has sent the DNA profiles of families of 49 people who went missing after flash floods near the Nepal-China border on August 26 to authorities in Nepal and China through the central government, so they can be matched with DNA samples of bodies recovered in the two countries, officials familiar with the matter told HT. All 49 people were part of a 64-member group travelling to the Kailash Mansarovar with Dr Milind Chitley and his firm, Hills and Trails, with Richa Tours as their partner in Nepal. "Of the 64 persons on the trip, four were from other states while the remaining were from various parts of Maharashtra such as Pune, Nashik, Thane, Palghar and Mumbai. Families of some missing persons had already submitted DNA samples at places like Nepal, Patna and Delhi. We coordinated with the remaining 49 families and their DNA samples were collected at the Directorate of Forensic Science Laboratories (DFSL) in Kalina," an official said, requesting anonymity. Dr Bhalchandra Chavan, director, disaster management department, said two sets of samples had been collected from the families of missing persons for better identification. "These samples have been sent to both Nepal and China, so their governments can check with their database. If there is a match, we will be informed. But right now, no further information is available," Dr Chavan said. Family members of the missing said that while the Nepal government had been quite forthcoming and relevant information was available on its websites and social media handles, not much information had been shared by the Chinese government. Speaking to HT, they feared that sifting and matching DNA profiles would take a long time, given the massive toll in the tragedy. Vivek Nathwani, brother of the missing Dr Jay Kotecha, said that even if the Nepal government put all systems in place, they would take a long time to process the samples and match them with the nearly 1,200 bodies recovered so far. "I and three other family members visited Kathmandu after the floods and spent more than 12 days there but to no avail," he said. Shirish Patankar, brother of Satish Patankar from Thane, said they too had also considered visiting Kathmandu, only to be told that it was under complete blockade. "For a long time, (Charuhas) Joshi from Richa Travels stayed in Nepal to co-ordinate things. But now, there is nothing more to be found there," said Patankar, who is based in Pune. Officials said that though chances of survival of those missing were slim, they could not issue death certificates, which are crucial for processing insurance claims and other formalities, till their bodies were found or seven years had passed. "Indian regulations state that if a person is missing for seven years, they are considered dead and a death certificate can be issued to the family. However, in this case, since the incident happened in another country, we are unable to take a decision," Chavan said. Relatives of the missing, however, have not entirely given up on hope. Speaking to HT, they said they were in regular touch with government officials, who were very helpful and co-operative. They also had a common refrain: 'Do let us know if you get to know anything'....