Indian families get closure as 4 bodies found 56 years after plane crash

That was the phone call that ended a decades-long wait – 56 years and eight months to be exact.

The caller from Pathanamthitta district police station in the southern Indian state of Kerala gave Thomas Thomas surprising news – the body of his brother, Thomas Cherian, had finally been found.

Cherian, an army craftsman, was among the 102 passengers on an Indian Air Force plane that crashed in the Himalayas in 1968 after encountering harsh weather conditions.

The plane turned off radar while flying over the Rohtang Pass, which connects the northern state of Himachal Pradesh with Indian-administered Kashmir.

For many years, the IAF AN-12 aircraft was listed as missing and its fate remained a mystery.

Then in 2003, a climbing group found the body of a passenger.

In the years since, military search expeditions have discovered eight more bodies, and in 2019, debris from the plane was recovered from the mountain.

A few days ago, the 1968 accident once again made headlines when the military found four bodies, including Cherian’s.

Mr Thomas told BBC Hindi that when the news reached the family, it felt like “the suffocation of 56 years suddenly disappeared”.

“I can finally breathe again,” he said.

Cherian, the second of five children, was just 22 years old when she disappeared. He boarded a plane to his first job site in the Leh region of the Himalayas.

Only in 2003, when the first body was found, did his status change from missing to dead.

“Our father died in 1990 and our mother died in 1998, both waiting for news about their missing son,” Mr. Thomas said.

Up to now, only 13 bodies have been found at the accident scene.

The area’s harsh weather conditions and icy terrain made it difficult for search teams to conduct expeditions there.

The bodies of Cherian and three others – Narayan Singh, Malkan Singh and Munshiram – were found 16,000ft above sea level near the Dhaka glacier. The latest operation was carried out by the Dogra Scouts – a unit of the Indian army’s Dogra regiment – and members of the Tiranga Mountain Rescue Team.

Col. Lalit Palaria, commanding officer of the Dogra Scouts, said officials used satellite imagery, Recco radar and drones to locate the bodies.

The Recco radar can detect metal objects buried in snow at a depth of about 20m, and has identified aircraft debris in the area.

Afterwards, the research team dug through the rubble themselves and found a body.

Three more bodies were recovered from inside crevices in the glacier.

It was the name tag on Cherian’s uniform – “Thomas C”, with only the C of his surname visible – along with a document in his pocket that helped officials identify him.

His family says that although the pain of losing him can never go away, they are relieved to finally have it resolved.

On October 3, officials handed over Cherian’s coffin draped with the Indian flag to his family. A day later, the funeral was held at a church in their village Elanthoor.

Mr. Thomas said that throughout the years of waiting, military officials told them that the search was continuing and that they would announce when Cherian’s body was found.

“We really appreciate them keeping us informed all these years,” he said, adding that many other members of the extended family joined the armed forces even after Cherian died accumulation.

Like Odalil’s family, relatives of other soldiers whose bodies were recently found are also dealing with grief and relief. Many of their closest relatives, including parents and spouses, died waiting for news about them.

In the northern state of Uttarakhand, Jaiveer Singh is still processing the news. He also received the body of uncle Narayan Singh in early October.

Years after Narayan Singh went missing, his family lost all hope. So, with their consent, Singh’s wife, Basanti Devi, started a new life with one of his cousins. Jaiveer Singh was one of the children born from that relationship.

He said that for many years, his mother had held out hope for Narayan Singh’s return. She passed away in 2011.

“I don’t even have a photo of my uncle as a souvenir,” he said.

Additional reporting by Asif Ali in Uttarakhand