"Eltex" is a system for numbering equations and references in a TeX
buffer, without the intervention of any tex macros.
(It will also provide symbols for the footnotes if you don't.)

How to install eltex: See the "Instructions" link

For further information see the internal documentation of the functions
themselves, starting with `eltex-do'.

User commands provided by eltex 
(invoke with M-x, as for all emacs commands)

   eltex-do 

   eltex-list-refs 
   eltex-list-eqs   

   ref 
   eqn 
   footnote