In Delhi, police step up to cremate elderly and those who lived alone

New Delhi, Apr 27: The police in Delhi have stepped up to perform the last rites of elderly men. An Army Lieutenant Colonel posted in Leh called the Delhi Police seeking help with the cremation of his father-in-law who lived in Dwaraka and passed away due to COVID-19 related complications.

The police team in PPE kits collected the body and took it to the crematorium and performed the last rites as per Hindu traditions. The police have made arrangements for several others who lived alone or their families stayed away due to the fear of the virus.

In many other cases, the families have not been able to attend the funeral as they have contracted the virus themselves. On Sunday, the police cremated a woman on her brother's request in Dwaraka. In Karol Bagh, the police made arrangements for the funerals of an elderly couple who died due to COVID-19.

Deputy Commission of Police (Dwaraka) Santosh Kumar Meena said that they had received a request from a Lieutenant Colonel that his father-in-law, who lived in Dwaraka had died of COVID-19. He expressed his inability to come to Delhi at such short notice. On his request the personnel from the Dwaraka North police station made arrangements for the cremation, he also said.

"We received another call that day about a woman, Jai Matnani, dying of Covid. The caller was her brother. He said there was nobody to take the responsibility of her cremation. On humanitarian grounds, we took over that responsibility and her body was immediately shifted to a cremation ground in Dwarka's Sector 24, where she was cremated as per the Hindu rituals," Meena also said.