Team Herald
PONDA: Performing the final rites on COVID bodies in these testing times has turned out to be costly affair for the common man!
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The high expenditure involved in performing the final rites has made it difficult for both the Ponda locals as well as the migrants, who have been rendered jobless during the pandemic.
They have now demanded that the government either fix the rate for cremation or bear the cost of final rites on COVID bodies.
It is pertinent to note that the High Court of Bombay at Goa recently took up the plight of the people regarding overcharging by some private ambulances and hearse vans. The court had asked the government to consider what can be done to cap the hearse rates to bring relief to the affected families.
Most COVID bodies are cremated at Ponda Municipal Council (PMC) crematorium at Varkhandem. The civic body charges nearly Rs 5,000 per cremation. And one has to pay more for ferrying the COVID body.
The total expenditure with regards to transportation, cremation, PPE kits with labourers, fee for preserving COVID body in morgue is huge as compared to final rites performed on a non-COVID body.
The panchayat crematorium charges between Rs 2000 and 3000 per cremation but most village crematoriums are not used for final rites on COVID bodies.
A Talaulim local said recently a migrant succumbed to COVID and his wife was unable to bear the cost of the final rites.
Usgao locals said several migrants reside in the village, but there is no crematorium for them and they are forced to perform final rites at the PMC crematorium.
Kavlem sarpanch Rajesh Kavlekar said, “The government should bear the cost of performing final rites on COVID bodies as the high cost is not affordable to the poor families. Recently, several trees which got uprooted due to the cyclone can be used for cremation. Wet/fresh tree branches are used for cremation and are easily available. Even the Forest Department can make available the dry trees.”
He said, “The Ponda Municipal Council (PMC) charges Rs 5,000 per cremation for those not coming under its jurisdiction. Surprisingly, PMC provided some respite to the people residing in its jurisdiction by charging Rs 2,000.”
