Delhi’s first CNG-based pet crematorium to be operational by April

‘Smokeless facility’ will charge ₹2,000 to ₹3,000 based on weight of the animal; stray dog cremation from SDMC areas to be cremated free

The South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) has initiated the construction work on the first municipal pet crematorium of the city in Dwarka and the work on the project is likely to be completed in the next four months by April 2022, leader of the House Inderjeet Sehrawat said on Monday.

A senior veterinary department official said that the facility will come up on a 700 square metre site inside the 4-acre dog centre complex in Dwarka where the sterilisation centre is already operational. (Representational image/Reuters File)

Sehrawat said that the veterinary department is setting up the city’s first CNG-based cremation centre for small animals in Dwarka Sector 29, where provisions will be made to store their ashes for 15 days after being cremated with proper rituals. “The project is being executed in public–private partnership mode (for 10 years) and the entire cost of construction, upkeep, and maintenance of this crematorium will be taken up by the NGO Green Revolution Foundation. The arrangement with the agency allows it to operate the facility for 10 years and the agency has been selected through an open tender process,” Sehrawat said.

As part of the agreement, the corporation has allotted land for the cremation centre; the SDMC will retain ownership of the crematorium.

A senior veterinary department official said that the facility will come up on a 700 square metre site inside the 4-acre dog centre complex in Dwarka where the sterilisation centre is already operational.

“Pet owners will be able to get back the ashes. There will be other facilities such as prayer rooms available. We are also making provisions for a locker room. The facility will have two furnaces with a capacity of 200kg biomass capacity and a 150kg biomass capacity per cycle each. Each cremation cycle will take 30 minutes to 1 hour,” the official said, adding that the facility will be smokeless.

“As part of the contract, the developer will have to install an air pollution control system. The CNG eco-friendly crematorium will be constructed with advanced air purification technology to make it 98% smokeless and pollution-free. The smoke will also pass through a wet scrubber. While initially we planned to set up a dog-only crematorium, the project has been expanded to include other small animals such as cats, goat, sheep and monkeys,” the official explained.

Sehrawat said that the corporation has fixed a fee of ₹2,000 for cremating animals that weigh less than 30 kilograms and ₹3,000 for cremating dogs and other animals that weigh more. “Cremation of stray dogs from areas under the jurisdiction of the SDMC will be done free of cost while a rate of ₹500 has been fixed for the cremation of stray dogs from areas under the jurisdiction of other civic agencies,” Sehrawat added.

The other four agencies-- north MCD, east MCD, New Delhi Municipal Council and Delhi Cantonment Board- will be expected to transport the dead animals to the centre while the NGO has been tasked to ensure transportation of dead animals in SDMC areas to the Dwarka centre, Sehrawat added.

The much-delayed project was first announced in 2018. Recently, the north MCD also expressed interest in setting up a similar facility. The Dwarka dog crematorium site had become a point of controversy in April-May, when the city was facing its worst mortality rates due to the second wave of Covid pandemic, and the civic body had decided to create temporary pyre platforms with the goal of expanding the daily Covid cremation capacity. Ultimately, the site was never used for human cremations.

Dr Ravindra Sharma, director (veterinary department) SDMC, said since many pet lovers wanted dignified last rites for their pets, the crematorium will also arrange for priests and urns. “There will be a priest at the crematorium, to perform traditional rituals. At the new crematorium, there will be a facility to store ashes for 15 days from the date of cremation, so that people can collect them later,” he said.

Pet-owners in the city have lauded the idea. Upendra Kumar of Greater Kailash-1, who owns an Alsatian, said that since south Delhi is home to a large number of pet-owners, the crematorium will really be beneficial. “Many of us had run from pillar to post to get our pets cremated, as south Delhi presently has only a small private crematorium for pets. This new crematorium will certainly give solace to us and peace to the souls of our pets,” he said.

With inputs from Sanjeev Jha