Crematorium staff raise health concerns over violations by hospitals

Staff at the Sector 32 and Madanpuri crematoriums alleged that a few private hospitals were sending bodies of Covid-19 victims wrapped in bedsheets, instead of body bags, as mandated to prevent the spread of the virus

Staff at the Sector 32 and Madanpuri crematoriums alleged that a few private hospitals were sending bodies of Covid-19 victims wrapped in bedsheets, instead of body bags, as mandated to prevent the spread of the virus. They said that rules were violated in at least three instances over the last two days.

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Sharing footage of one such incident on Thursday, staff at the Mokshdham cremation ground in Sector 32 raised health concerns, to themselves as well as the public, due to the violations. They said that ambulance drivers were also not wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) and taking the help of family members to carry the bodies.

In the footage, a copy of which is with Hindustan Times, the driver of an ambulance is seen entering the crematorium in an ambulance and placing a body on one of the platforms without following any precautions.

Sandeep Sharma, the in-charge of Mokshdham cremation ground in Sector 32, said, “In one instance, family members (of a Covid-19 victim) who had come in private cabs did not take any precautionary measures despite a Covid death in the family. They are at risk of getting infected as they were standing close to the body before handing it over to us.”

As per the protocols, a body is kept in a crematorium near the platform for 30 minutes for people to pay their respects from a distance.

Ashish Singla, chief medical officer (CMO), MCG, said they will issue a notice to the hospitals concerned to ensure such violations are not repeated. “We have already passed directions to not send any corpse without body bags. A body cover with a transparent face area should be used. The driver is instructed to wear PPE kits and no family members are allowed to touch the body. Strict action will be taken against people violating the protocols,” he said.

Singla said the hospitals have procured these body bags but small nursing homes are still not fully equipped to handle the bodies of Covid-19 patients. There is no shortage across the market and each hospital should keep at least five bags in case of emergency, he said.

Vinod Kumar, a staffer at the Madanpuri cremation ground, said that every day, there is at least one such violation. “All day, we are handling and cremating bodies, but we do not want to risk our lives. The hospitals should be held responsible for such negligent and careless approach,” he said.

Sharma said that in one instance, the body of a Covid-19 victim was placed in a public area in the vicinity of the crematorium, following which they complained to the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) and the hospital that sent the ambulance.

Family members of Covid-19 victims said they were unaware of the protocol, but admitted that they were not allowed to travel to the crematorium along with the bodies. “We learned after coming here that there is such a protocol and we are not supposed to handle the body or touch it. We performed the last rites standing at a distance,” said a resident of New Palam Vihar, who was performing the last rites of his elder brother at the Sector 32 facility.