ISLAMABAD As many as 78 dead bodies of the Margalla Hills plane crash victims were handed over to their heirs after identification, while 46 blood samples were collected from the relatives of other victims for DNA tests. Additional Deputy Commissioner, Agha Muhammad Qazalbash, said this while talking to media persons at Aabpara Community Centre. As many as 12 bodies have so far been identified by NADRA with the help of fingerprints while the rest of 66 dead bodies have been identified through personal verification. Those twelve deceased who were identified by NADRA included Saif-ud-Din, M Atif Rashid, Tariq Subhan, Hamid Javid, Syed Hasan Naseem, Murtaza Zaheer, Bilal Nasir, Muntajab, Shmas-ul-Haq, Insar Abbas and Syeda Rubab Naqvi. With regard to the recovery of dead bodies, the relief and rescue authorities almost completed their operation as by Thursday evening, 16 more bags stuffed with body parts were brought to the city mortuaries. However, search for other valuables and black box is still continuing. Executive Director PIMS, Mehmood Jamal, said the DNA samples taken from the relatives would be matched with the samples of dead bodies. The samples would be sent to KRL and after identification, the bodies would be handed over to the relatives which would take at least one week. Samples of all the dead bodies had already been collected by the PIMS staff on Wednesday. It is relevant to note here that 124 dead bodies have been placed at Sarhad Balochistan morgue situated in sector I-10/3. Talking to TheNation, the area Magistrate said, 40 dead bodies out of 124 have been identified so far and majority of them have been handed over to their heirs. Meanwhile, the rescue activities to collect the remains of those who perished in the tragedy remained suspended almost thorough out the day as it was raining. The Army helicopters could also not take part in the rescue operation due to heavy rain. Despite this some volunteers and rescue officials tried their level best and brought some remains of the victims. The rain hampered recovery efforts and we had no option but to wait for the downpour to stop, said Abdul Razaq a rescue official. Interior Minister Rehman Malik also visited the camp. Speaking to media persons, he said it was a big tragedy as hundreds of families had lost their loved ones, adding that the issue should not be politicised. He said Civil Aviation Authority was investigating the matter and the dead bodies would be sent to their hometowns by the government. List of the identified dead bodies and other instructions for the relatives were also displayed for their convenience at the camp. Lunch was also served to the relatives who had come from different areas to give DNA samples.