Kriti Agrawal
Currently, 7 of Bengaluru’s 13 crematoriums have been designated for the cremation of persons died due to COVID-19.
On Thursday the Karnataka High Court ordered the state government to look into the issue of only 7 of Bengaluru’s 13 crematoriums being designated for cremation of person died due to COVID-19, leaving relatives of the deceased waiting for hours in lines.
The order was released by a division bench comprised of Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and Justice Aravind Kumar after it was found out that workers at these seven crematoriums are forced to operate for 16-18 hours a day and that there is a risk of electric furnaces breaking down due to overworking.
The Summanahalli electric crematorium has a capacity of 16 bodies per day, but 25 COVID-19 victims were cremated, as advocate Clifton D’Rozario pointed out to the bench while representing the All-India Central Council for Trade Unions.
Meanwhile, the bench directed the government to investigate the shortage of burial grounds, including those for Christians, in cities such as Bengaluru and Mysuru, in addition to attempting to use other electric crematoriums for COVID-19 victims in Bengaluru.
The bench also directed the State government to ensure that COVID-19 victims and their families are treated with dignity in accordance with guidelines provided last year in response to the court’s orders.