A group that arranges for last rites amid lockdown

Manish Kumar, a social worker in the group, said that even close relatives do not turn up at funerals, fearing risk of contacting coronavirus infection.

Arranging a funeral has become difficult for many families losing their loved ones amid the lockdown since lockdown rules specify that attendence at funerals be low, which is also convincing people to get help from a group of activists that help the bereaved families conduct the rituals.

People, wearing protective suits, offer funeral prayers for a man who died due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19), before his burial at a graveyard in Dhaka, Bangladesh, April 6, 2020. (REUTERS/ Representative image)

They have to hire people to help them in preparing for the last rites and for other arrangements at the cremation site, Gulabi Ghaat in Ranchi, said Jaiprakash, one of the group members.

"Even close relatives fail to turn up, partly due to the lockdown restrictions, and partly because of the fear of infection. Some families even prefer to register their presence in the rituals online,” he said.

A person hired for the job is paid roughly Rs 300 for a duration of three to four hours. Those who are out of work due to the lockdown readily agree to do the job to earn some money, he said.

“Since the lockdown came into effect, we have handled 16 such cases. It’s a home-to-Ghaat service. We not only provide the manual labour but also a vehicle to carry the body in to the cremation site. We have a fixed rate of materials required for the rituals, and have directed the sellers to charge Rs 6,000 for the entire package from middle-income family groups. Poor families can get the same service for Rs 2,000. However, if a family cannot afford that, we bear the entire cost,” Jaiprakash said.

Manish Kumar, another social worker in the group, said that even close relatives do not turn up at funerals, fearing risk of infection.

“We were shocked when someone contacted us for the first time for this service, on March 25. We received a call from Govind Mitra Road in the city. It was more surprising since the family was quite affluent and had sufficient resources. We arranged ambulance service and collected things from the Ghaat for them,” said Sushil, another member of the group.

“That day we decided to help all such families for cremation during the lockdown,” he added.

In many cases, families prefer electric cremation because of the crisis. The facility is available at Baans Ghaat in the city, he said.