Will take all steps to bring back bodies of 8 Kerala tourists from Nepal: Vijayan

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday said his government will take all steps to ensure that the mortal remains of eight tourists from the state who died at a resort in Nepal are brought back at the earliest.

The bodies are expected to be brought to the state on Wednesday, a statement from the Chief Minister's Office said.

Union Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan said he has asked the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu to make all arrangements to bring back the bodies.

The tourists, including four minors, died after they fell unconscious probably due to a gas leak from a heater in their room at a mountainous resort, police said.

The Indian nationals were airlifted to HAMS hospital in Kathmandu where they were pronounced dead on arrival, they said.

Vijayan expressed "deep grief" over the incident, the statement said.

According to the chief minister's directions, officials of Department of Non-Resident Keralites Affairs (NORKA) have gotten in touch with the Indian Embassy in Nepal, it said.

The bodies are expected to be brought to the state on Wednesday after post-mortem, it added.

Makwanpur police said the victims, who were a part of a group of 15 tourists, might have fallen unconscious due to asphyxiation.

Muraleedharan told PTI that he has asked the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu to make all arrangements to bring back the bodies.

He said he has also deputed a doctor from the Indian Embassy to coordinate the medico-legal procedures.

A doctor from the Indian Embassy also went to the hospital where the bodies have been kept to examine the cause of the deaths, he added.

"We are in regular touch with the Indian embassy in Kathmandu", Muraleedharan, who is also a Rajya Sabha member from Kerala, said.

Transport for the remaining tourists of the group is also being arranged, he said.

The victims were identified as Praveen Krishnan Nair, Saranya Sasi, Sreebhadra Praveen, Aarcha Praveen, Abhinav Saranya Nair, Ranjith Kumar Adatholath Punathil, Indu Lakshmi Peethambaran Ragalatha and Vyshnav Ranjith.

They were on their way back home and stayed at Everest Panorama Resort in Daman in Makawanpur district on Monday night.

According to the manager at the resort, the guests stayed in a room and turned on a gas heater to keep themselves warm.