Flow of bodies overwhelms Ludhiana crematoriums
LUDHIANA : As the hospitals are bursting at the seams with the sudden spurt in Covid patients, the three main crematoriums in Ludhiana city where the virus victims are being consigned to flames are overwhelmed with the flow of bodies.
According to the data shared by the health department, 102 patients have succumbed to the contagion in the past five days, of which 76 were from Ludhiana, 26 from other districts and states, including five from Delhi. Jajpreet Singh, manager of Samvedna Trust, the NGO entrusted with the responsibility to cremate the bodies, said as many as
60 cremations were done by them on Thursday and Friday.
He said 24 and 28 deaths were witnessed on April 29 and 30 respectively, while some of the 18 patients who died on April 28 were also cremated on Thursday. He said it takes at least one
hour to cremate a body and since there are limited workers, the waiting list is swelling.
At Dana Mandi crematorium on Gill Road, one of the volunteers broke down on camera and made an emotive appeal to the residents not to take coronavirus lightly. In the video, volunteer Gopal Singh can be heard advising people to be cautious and those calling the virus a hoax should visit crematoriums.
He said some of the bodies had to be sent back as there was no space and no wood. “With folded hands the bodies are being sent to the other crematorium as there was not enough space to cremate the dead,” said another volunteer, Mandeep Keshav. He said the bodies were cremated even after sunset.
On Friday, municipal corporation joint commissioner Swati Tiwana has said 32 cremations took place till 8pm, including those who died a day before and some bodies which were kept as their relatives were being awaited.