MARGAO
In times of Covid-19 pandemic and with mounting cases and rising deaths, unscrupulous persons make hay on the disposal of the dead, fleecing unsuspecting relatives to cough up thousands of rupees to give a decent burial to their dear and loved ones.
In the absence of a full-proof mechanism, wherein the administration takes the responsibility of arranging the labourers and hearse vans, funeral packages have come to the fore, starting from Rs 25,000 onwards. The funeral package includes a coffin, labourers to carry the Covid body and the hearse van to transport the body from the South Goa district hospital mortuary to the cemetery, throwing up questions why the administration has not stepped in to arrange the hearse vans and labourers and save gullible relatives who find themselves at the mercy of these unscrupulous touts.
Sources say a mechanism arranging labourers and hearse vans seemed to have eluded the administration, leaving families at the mercy of the touts and unscrupulous people. Unlike the first wave, when the administration had taken complete control over the transportation of the dead, a system seemed not in place during the second Covid wave.
Consider this. District hospital Mortuary in-charge, Medico-legal surgeon, Dr Madhu Ghudkirekar says that Margao deputy Collector, Jyoti Kumari has capped the fees of an individual labourer to Rs 1250 per body. Dr Madhu, however, concedes that the touts are exploiting the situation, with reports saying they charge well beyond the fees capped by the deputy Collector. “Even if a family with no assistance at all to carry the body, decides to hire four labourers to carry the coffin with a Covid body, the total fees on labour should not cost them beyond Rs 5000. But, we have information that some touts are fleecing the relatives to cough up huge money on hiring the labourers”, he added.
The situation is no better vis-à-vis the hearse vans used for the transportation of the Covid bodies from the district hospital. The South Goa district hospital is equipped with three hearse vans at its disposal to transport the Covid bodies from the hospital to the cemeteries or cremation grounds in different parts of the state.
The three hearse vans, however, have been found grossly inadequate to meet the growing requirements with the Covid mortality rate showing no signs of abating. People find themselves at the mercy of the touts when the official hearse vans travel to far-away places in North Goa and deep down South.
To tide over the situation, Dr Madhu says he has sought the assistance of the MLAs from South Goa, including Dy Chief Minister Chandrakant Kavlekar, Power Minister Nilesh Cabral and Fatorda MLA Vijai Sardesai and others to leave their hearse vans at the disposal of the district hospital to transport the Covid bodies to their respective constituencies.
The arrangement, however, has not fully solved the issue of transportation of the Covid bodies due to the rising number of deaths, with the district hospital recording over 10 deaths per day.
Officials in the know suggested the administration should appoint a dedicated nodal officer with a team to arrange the labourers and the hearse vans to stop the touts from exploiting the situation. “When the deputy Collector has capped the fees of labourers, the administration should ensure adequate number of labourers available at the disposal of the nodal officer to draft them to carry the bodies.
Similarly, the administration should requisition hearse vans from other sources, including Civic bodies to ensure there’s no dearth of vans to transport the Covid bodies from the district hospital to the towns and villages for the last rites. “When there are no government owned hearse vans and labourers around, you can well imagine that relatives of the deceased may have no option than to seek the help of the agents and touts”, the official said.
The official added: “Let the individual families decide on the choice of the coffins they want to arrange for their dear ones, but at least, they should be spared of the huge labour and transportation fees. The administration should empanel labourers or contractors to provide the labour and cap the fees”.
