Mourning the dead in Bhuj

A Hindu priest prays for the dead

In this story: Salvaging what is left Signs of life return RELATED STORIES, SITES

From CNN's Kasra Naji

BHUJ, India (CNN) -- Twelve days after the earthquake, Hindu priests held ceremonies in Bhuj to pray for the dead. They built fires in sacrificial pits, which is supposed to encourage the human soul to make the transition from earth to heaven.

It was a somber occasion. Hindu priests chanted as mourners looked on. Some of the bereaved had shaved their heads, a sign of mourning in Hindu tradition. It's a ritual often conducted in the privacy of the home. But here in Bhuj so many are now homeless.

VIDEO CNN's Kasra Naji has more on the relief efforts in India (February 6) Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)    IN-DEPTH India Quake: From Holiday to Horror   •  Damage cost estimate   •  TIME: Photo essay   •  Q&A on quake damage   •  20 years of deadly quakes   •  Where to send help

Across the street from where the ceremony was held, we saw army engineers studying a map of the old part of town, which was heavily populated, and full of narrow lanes. Most of these lanes are still blocked, making many of the old houses inaccessible.

Salvaging what is left

Further on, we saw a bulldozer working to remove a big heap of rubble. The workers had already found 10 bodies in last few days and believed they would find 5 more under there. On Wednesday in Bhuj alone, they found 92 more bodies.

Further again in narrow lanes that are open, you see people, mostly young, male members of families who are coming back to houses to salvage what they can of their belongings.

They are taking a risk, getting into houses so badly damaged they are dangerous. They emerge with clothes, TV's, personal items. For the living, life has to go on.

Signs of life return

In other parts of town , we see soup kitchens being set up in some neighborhoods. One or two shops are opening. Aid agencies are everywhere, distributing things, setting up hospitals.

Earthquake survivors line up for food and water outside a tent in Bhuj

The Red Cross hospital is going to take the load of the three hospitals Bhuj once had. Another agency is putting up a field hospital.

Electricity is coming back. But running water is still a problem. Hundreds of thousands of people are living out in the open throughout this region.

Those without shelter wonder how long they will have to live this way. Sanitation is a major problem and there are fears of epidemics breaking out.

When you talk to aid workers, they say nobody is going hungry; what they need now is tents and other construction materials with which they can set up temporary shelters.

The deadline for this is mid-year -- the monsoon season. Whatever they do about housing people, has to be done before then.

Quake homeless offered food for work
February 6, 2001
Two found alive 10 days after quake
February 5, 2001
14,000 still buried after quake
February 4, 2001
Tremors spark fear in India
February 3, 2001
Epidemic warnings for quake survivors
February 3, 2001
Disease fears cloud India quake relief work
February 1, 2001
New faces of hope found under India's rubble
January 31, 2001
Order collapses as India quake survivors seek food, water
January 30, 2001
Rescues continue 4 days after devastating India earthquake
January 29, 2001
India quake: 'Nothing left between the sky and earth'
January 27, 2001

U.S. Geological Survey
UNICEF Relief Effort
International Red Cross and Red Crescent

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.