Bodies pile up at Bengaluru's municipality crematoriums

Several ambulances are seen queued up with dead bodies at Bengaluru's municipality crematoriums. Five crematoriums in the city have been specifically allocated to burn the dead bodies of those who died due to Covid.

Bengaluru (Karnataka): The death toll due to the Covid pandemic in the city has risen and the situation in crematoriums has worsened. Ambulances are seen queued up with dead bodies near crematoriums, with the duration to burn a single body taking one and half hour.

Sadly, employees who work at these crematoriums are totally stressed. They are not being supplied with masks, gloves, PPE kits, sanitisers etc.

Five crematoriums have been reserved in Medi Agrahara, Sumanahalli, Bommahalli, Kengeri and Penathoor to burn the dead bodies of those who died due to Covid. Among these, the cremators in Panathur and Kengeri are not working due to technical issues. The situation is such that it is causing anxiety to the public.

Employees of Sumanahalli crematorium say that 20-25 Covid infected dead bodies arrive on a daily basis as Covid cases have surged.

"We are working on burning dead bodies day and night. But we do not have any protection. We don't have PPE kits. We also have wife and children and are worried about their health," the employees added.

Last year, though they spent from their pockets to purchase masks, gloves and PPE kits during the crisis, they were not refunded by the government. We will not work unless the necessary facilities are provided by BBMP. Otherwise, we will fight and close the crematorium, a cemetery employee Ravi told ETV Bharat.