With the number of bodies increasing by the day, third-generation grave digger at Delhi Gate cemetery has written to committee members asking them to allow more space to bury COVID-19-infected bodies.
Running out of space
Mohammed Shamim, gravedigger at Jadid Qabristan Ahle Islam, said that he had written to the members around a week ago, stating that he is falling short on space.
“I am burying at least 15 bodies a day for the last few days. In this 45-acre land, I have three acres space allotted to bury COVID-19-infected or suspected bodies,” he said.
He said that he along with others have buried nearly 1,000 bodies since the beginning of the pandemic and are now falling short of space. “I am barely managing. It’s only been a year so I can’t dig the graves of others just yet,” he said.
Reflecting on the gravity of the situation, he said that last year, they had received a maximum of 18 bodies and this time, so far, they have received 20 bodies on a single day. “And going by the numbers, it seems that it’s only going to increase. Hence, we need the space,” he said.
Shamim has asked for 1.5 acres of additional space to ease the situation.
Have written to CM, L-G
Responding on the letter, Qabristan Ahle Islam Committee vice-president Shamim Ahmad Khan told The Hindu that they had written to the Chief Minister and Lieutenant-Governor regarding the space issue. He also said that they are now allowed to use the 4-acre space at the cemetery in Millenium Park.
Another burial ground
“Last year, during the pandemic, they had shut the Indraprastha cemetery. We wrote to them and they approved it in second week of April,” he said. However, they’re yet to formally start the burialat the said cemetery, he said.
“I would like to request your office to send directions that other cemetery may also be used for the same. Presently, there is total chaos due to this activity,” the committee wrote.