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Roopkund is a place in Uttaranchal India, the location of about three to six hundred skeletons at the edge of a lake—Skeleton Lake in the Himalayas. The location is uninhabited and is located at an altitude of about 5,029 metres. The skeletons were discovered in the 1942 when stumbled upon by a park ranger. At that time it was believed that the people died from an epidemic, landslides or a blizzard. The carbon dating from samples collected at that time in the 1960s vaguely indicated that the people were from the 12th century to the 15th century.
In 2004 a team of Indian and European scientists set off to the location to gain more information on the skeletons. Braving bitter cold weather and thin air, the team uncovered vital clues including jewellery, skulls, bones and a preserved body.
DNA tests on the bodies revealed that there were two groups of people, a short group (probably local porters) and a taller group who were closely related. Though the numbers were not ascertained, it is believed that three to six hundred people perished. Radio carbon dating of the bones also accurately pinpointed the time period to be in the 9th century predating the earlier inaccurate tests.
After studying fractures in the skulls, the scientists in Hyderabad and London determined that the people died not of disease but of a sudden hailstorm. The hail sizes were as large as cricket balls and with no shelter in the open Himalayas all of them perished. Furthermore with the rarefied air and icy conditions, many bodies were well preserved. With landslides in the area, some of the bodies made their way into the lake. What is not determined was where the group was headed to. There is no historical evidence of any trade routes to Tibet in the area or any places of pilgrimage. National Geographic Channel is the first to learn about the latest findings on the Roopkund Lake tragedy in a documentary titled Skeleton Lake. The documentary reveals the secret behind the lake’s mass grave in Uttaranchal, based on the latest anthropological and medical evidences that has been unearthed. Film 'Skeleton lake' has been produced by Miditech Pvt Ltd, directed by Chandramouli Basu and written by Niret and Nikhil Alva. The film claims to finally solved a riddle that had haunted many experts for over 60 years. The Roopkund riddle started in 1942, when a forest ranger accidentally unearthed a mass grave in Roopkund Lake.
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