The wait to cremate bodies of Covid-19 victims in Ludhiana is getting painfully longer. With just one electric crematorium bearing the burden of coronavirus deaths in the district, families are being forced to wait for up to three days to cremate their loved ones.
The body of Covid-19 patient Sanjeev Nagpal, 49, who died due to non-availability of a ventilator bed on Friday, will be kept in the mortuary for three days before it will be consigned to flames. Manjeet Nagpal, brother of Sanjeev, alleged, “My brother died after the DMCH authorities informed us that there was no ventilator bed available in the hospital. We had decided to perform the cremation on Saturday, but when we reached the crematorium, we were told to wait till Monday.”
“There are nearly 12 Covid-19 victims who are yet to be cremated,” said Ranjodh Singh, president of Ramgarhia Educational Trust, that is managing the crematorium located opposite to military complex at Dholewal.
The cremation ground is dedicated to cremate bodies of coronavirus victims.
“As per the Covid protocol, we can perform a maximum of four cremations a day. The authorities have shared a list of 12 victims, both from the district as well as outside the district, who have succumbed to the virus in the last couple of days. This has forced families to wait for up to three days to cremate their loved ones,” said Ranjodh.
{{/usCountry}}“As per the Covid protocol, we can perform a maximum of four cremations a day. The authorities have shared a list of 12 victims, both from the district as well as outside the district, who have succumbed to the virus in the last couple of days. This has forced families to wait for up to three days to cremate their loved ones,” said Ranjodh.
{{/usCountry}}He said that neighbouring districts of Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur, Sangrur and Faridkot were also diverting cremations to the Ramgarhia crematorium.
He said that the trust had so far cremated 69 Covid-19 victims.
It was in April when Ranjodh had offered to cremate a Covid-19 victim after his kin had refused to perform the last rites.The Ramgarhia Educational Trust had spared one LPG crematorium for this purpose.
“As the number of deaths is on the rise, we are planning to open another LPG operated chamber to speed up the cremation process,” said Ranjodh.
Covid-19 fear driving people away
Since the crematorium is bearing the burden of coronavirus deaths, residents have stopped bringing bodies of their loved ones who died in accidents or due to any ailment.
Some priests performing the last rites have been staying away from their families to keep them safe. “I am avoiding to visit home ever since I started performing the last rites. Sadly, the administration is not paying heed to our plight. We have not been provided prophylactic (preventive) treatment or an insurance cover,” said Pankaj, one of the priests here.
Ranjodh said he had requested the authorities to provide an insurance cover to his four employees.
Victims’ families refuse to collect ashes after last rites
Ranjodh said that families of some coronavirus victims had not returned to the crematorium after the final rites to collect the ashes of their loved ones. “The ashes of 40 patients have not been collected by their families,” he said.