Bhubaneswar: The COVID warriors of the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) in an exemplary act of sensitive and responsive portrayal of their duty to tackle the current situation, have so far, helped in cremating 161 bodies.
These 161 cases include some deaths related to other states and some suspect cases.
The cremation, being carried out in accordance with the standard operating procedure (SOP) by the Centre and State Government, is done for those from local hospital deaths, nearby hospitals in the vicinity of the State Capital, from other districts and even from neighbouring states, where the cremation process as per the COVID protocol could not be met.
This act of timely help for the last journey of the patients has helped the families immensely, which are facing difficult times due to the pandemic situation. The team is dedicatedly doing their noble job to receive, transport and conduct cremation of the bodies in conformity with the COVID-19 Dead Body Management Guidelines issued by the Government of India. This is done in compassionate consultation with the family members of the deceased and the entire process is done free of cost.
While Purandar Nanda, Deputy Commissioner BMC, is leading the cremation team which also includes a medical officer from Capital Hospital Bhubaneswar, an engineer from BMC, representative of IIC of Kharavel Nagar and representatives from other police stations from where the death is reported, Deputy Commissioner BMC, Srimanta Mishra, is the Supervising Official for the entire operation.
The process of the cremation of the deceased happens like this: After the death of the person in any COVID hospital or other healthcare facility a report comes to BMC official mail. After the mail arrives, the relatives of the deceased are informed to give consent for cremation. If the person can be contacted over phone, it can be collected directly or if the person is not traceable then the consent is obtained through the district administration.
BMC Commissioner then issues an office order to form a team in which medical doctor, administrative officers, police representatives and engineer as members are included to oversee the operation. After this step the hearse arrives from Capital Hospital to the place where the body is kept. If the body is inside the morgue of the Capital Hospital, the body is taken from there to Satyanagar Cremation Ground so that the family members could show the last respect.
It can be mentioned here that people from all religious groups also get the opportunity to cremate the body of their kin as per the religious beliefs of their community. The Hindu families also do get an opportunity to collect the ‘’asthi’’ or bone for religious purposes.
The scientific burial of the bodies at the Satyanagar Crematorium Ground by BMC has set an example for others and the team is also trying to brief the district level teams to learn the lessons as per the COVID-19 guidelines.
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