Delhi Mundka fire: Forensic experts find more DNA profiles apart from 27 victims 

NEW DELHI: The Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) has found additional DNA profiles other than that of the 27 victims of the massive fire which broke out in Mundka in May and the samples have been preserved to help in identification in future, according to officials.

Experts at Rohini’s FSL stumbled upon this while they were identifying the charred bodies with the help of DNA profile generation and matching them with the samples of the respective claimants in a two-month-long investigation.

“A total of 27 bodies were identified and handed over to the claimants. However, during the process of examination, some additional DNA profiles, which did not have any claimants, were generated. Such profiles have been preserved for future reference,” FSL director (Rohini) Deepa Verma said.
“In future, there are chances that someone may make claims about any of their family member’s presence. In such circumstances, additional DNA profiles preserved can be used for identification,” she added.

For the forensic examination, four officers were deputed under DS Paliwal, head of the Division of Biology and DNA. Paliwal 2005 supervised the DNA analysis and identification process in the Sarojini Nagar blast which claimed many lives.

“At the scene of the crime, all remaining parts of the charred bodies, some flesh which was found to be melted and highly decomposed were collected, making it a big challenge for the forensic experts to identify all the 27 bodies,” Paliwal said.