Covid-19: Patna crematorium sees 24-hour 'waiting list' as bodies pile up

With 68 more deaths reported in the last 24 hours here, there is a mad scramble at the main crematorium – Bans Ghat in the state capital. One has to reportedly wait for 20 to 24 hours before the last rites could be performed at this crematorium on the banks of Ganga.

Take the case of Purshottam Kumar who lost his aunt due to Covid-19. After she passed away at AIIMS-Patna, Kumar, as per the protocol for Covid patient, took the body to Bans Ghat. “When we reached there, we were informed that there were already 30 dead bodies lying there. We were asked to remain in queue,” Kumar said, adding that on an average, 25 bodies were consigned to flames in a single day.

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Another person from Patliputra Colony (on the condition of anonymity) informed that he reached Bans Ghat with his relative’s body on Saturday afternoon. “However, my number came on Sunday afternoon. Only then the body was consigned to flames,” he said here on Monday.

The Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC), meanwhile, has deployed additional workforce at Bans Ghat to tide over the crisis. “But since many workers have been afflicted with coronavirus while discharging their duties, several employees have taken leave. Others have expressed their inability to work under such atmosphere. Still, we have been able to cremate 23 bodies in the last 24 hours,” said the PMC employee.

He added that last year when Covid was at its peak, a maximum of 25 bodies were burnt at Bans Ghat per day. “This time around 400 bodies have been cremated in the last ten days,” he informed.