No proper access to crematorium: Villagers carry body and wood on shoulders for last rites in Uttarakhand's Pauri

It is ironic that final rites, which are supposed to be conducted on a peaceful note, were halted in between as the road to the crematorium was not reachable as it was damaged due to heavy rains. Surprisingly, the Pauri area falls under the constituency of Public Works Minister Satpal Maharaj. The kith and kin of the deceased vented their ire at the officials for the pathetic condition of the road as they were forced to carry wood to perform the last rites.

Pauri (Uttarakhand): Without any road connection to the cremation ground, the people of the Pauri district of Uttarakhand on Monday were forced to carry the body and wood on their shoulders for last rites. According to sources, on Sunday, an elderly man identified as Mukandi Lal, a resident of Pauri, passed away. The family took him for the last rites at his ancestral ghat Jwalpadevi situated on the Pauri-Kotdwar Highway. As per tradition, the villagers took the body in a procession on the Santudhar Motorway of Ringwadsyun Patti. Then they took a bus, however, after travelling for five to seven km by bus they found that a further two to three km of road was covered with debris at multiple places due to heavy rain.

When they could not think of any option, they considered it appropriate to carry the body on their shoulders and reach the ghat. After the collective efforts of the people, the wood and the body were taken to the cremation ground. Local resident DN Shah said, "This area falls under the constituency of Public Works Minister Satpal Maharaj, however, this area has remained in a pathetic condition. When we called the PWD officials, they didn't do anything." PWD's executive engineer KS Negi said, "The road was blocked due to rain. In between, it was opened by the department. But, due to rain, the road was damaged. Soon we will open the road for vehicles after repairs."