Team Herald
PONDA: With State, on an average, reporting over 60 COVID deaths daily at several COVID hospitals including Goa Medical College and Hospital, Bambolim, the Panjim and Margao crematoriums are facing space constraints, which has led to shifting of most bodies to Ponda Municipal Council’s (PMC) Mukthi Dham crematorium for final rites.
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According to Ponda locals, since bodies from other parts of State are brought at Ponda, the government should make arrangements of few more crematoriums for final rites of COVID deceased.
Though, there are several crematoriums in the State, presently only few crematoriums are used for final rites. The COVID bodies are required to cremate as per the government protocol and the two PMC workers are doing this job tirelessly and COVID deceased from various parts of State are also brought at PMC crematorium.
Since past few days, daily around four to five bodies are cremated at PMC crematorium and out of these more bodies are of COVID deceased. Today (May 9), there were around six bodies of COVID deceased cremated and the other bodies, which were brought for final rites, were preserved in the morgue of Ponda Sub-District Hospital.
According to Ponda Deputy Collector Pradeep Naik, who is also the Chief Officer of PMC, the workers at PMC crematorium are performing final rites of an average four to five persons, died due to COVID, in the presence of some of family members or relatives. Per day, the PMC crematorium has the capacity to perform final rites of only six bodies and if more bodies are brought for cremation, they are kept in waiting list at Ponda Sub-District Hospital morgue.
It may be recalled that last year final rites of first two COVID deceased were performed at Ponda Crematorium after some villagers had opposed to cremate bodies at local crematorium. However, recently, some villagers have changed their mind set and are performing final rites of COVID deceased at village crematoriums. However, this needs government’s protocol and so the main crematorium at Panjim, Margao and Ponda are in demand and preferred by relatives of COVID deceased.
