Three days after a 26-year-old techie from Andaman and Nicobar Islands died in Chennai reportedly due to a cardiac arrest, his family is yet to see his mortal remains due to the ongoing lockdown due to COVID-19.
Prakhar Kumar, the techie working in an Information Technology company in Adyar and an alumnus of NIT Puducherry, was found dead in his room in a men’s hostel in Karapakkam here on Saturday.
Though his father, a teacher, was informed soon after, the desperate efforts of the family and his friends to transport Prakhar’s body back to Port Blair have not materialised yet.
Shikhar Kumar, Prakhar’s brother, told The Hindu over phone that his family has been reaching out to the authorities in Andaman and Nicobar Islands. “Though passenger flights are not flying, the supplies are still coming from mainland through cargo flights. The authorities have been trying to bring the body in a cargo flight. Nearly four days have passed now, but it has not worked out,” he said.
“My family, particularly my parents, wants his last rites to be done here. The place where he grew up and loved. So our preference is not to travel to Chennai to finish the funeral in an unknown city,” he said.
Kota Kethan, Prakhar’s college mate and a colleague, said that the body has been kept in Government Royapettah Hospital in Chennai. “Postmortem has not been done yet. Hospital and police authorities say that the body must also be embalmed before transporting it,” he said.
Social media
Sravan Kumar, another friend, said that many of his friends have taken to social media platforms to reach out to Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and senior officials for help.
Police said that Prakhar was sharing a room with two others in a hostel in Karapakkam. He was staying alone when the incident happened as the other two had gone to their native place. He was seen in CCTV footage in the hostel on Friday evening. On Saturday, he was found dead in his bed, the police said, adding that the cause of death seemed to be a cardiac arrest.
Efforts being made
Veerakumar, Inspector, Kannagi Nagar police station, who is handling the case, said that all efforts were being made by senior officials in Andaman and Nicobar Islands in coordination with authorities in Chennai. “They are trying to transport the body either by a flight or in a ship. Once they confirm transportation arrangements, we are fully prepared to finish embalming and other formalities in the hospital in four hours,” he said.