Man’s body kept at home as family awaits test result

KOLKATA: THE body of a 71-year-old man was kept in his north Kolkata house for nearly two days because his family could not conduct his last rites or preserve his body in a mortuary while they waited for his Covid-19 result.

The man started showing symptoms on Saturday. His swab samples for a test were taken on Monday. “My uncle had fever since Saturday. On Monday his swab samples were collected by a private laboratory on the advice of a local doctor. But he had a cardiac arrest soon after that and died around 3 pm,” said Akshay Mullick, the man’s nephew.

“We tried in three mortuaries but none would preserve as they didn’t have the infrastructure to preserve a Covid-19 patient’s body. The civic body and the police were also trying and coordinating with us but nothing could be done as the city lacks this infrastructure,” Mullick said.

On Wednesday afternoon civic officials took the body to a Coviddesignated cremation ground where last rites were performed.