Middlemen at cemeteries, crematoriums under check

Middlemen at cemeteries, crematoriums under check

Siddharth.Prabhakar@timesgroup.com

Chennai:25.05.2021

Greater Chennai Corporation officials at the zonal level are now wary of brokers who pose as family members of deceased and book a slot at crematoriums and burial grounds for free while charging ₹15,000-₹20,000 from families.

Civic body staff now ask personal details of the deceased like the names of immediate family members, date of death and the hospital the person died at, to ensure that brokers are weeded out. In addition, zonal officials also have started spreading word among residents that there is no fee for last rites, including transporting the dead to the crematorium or burial ground.

A sanitary inspector told TOI that recently they came across cases where brokers called and tried to book slots. In some cases, they found that the person had died many days ago; in other cases, they found that brokers hung up as soon as they were asked questions about the deceased’s immediate family members.

“We have all details of the deceased in our system. So nobody can cheat us,” the sanitary inspector said. In addition, officials have also started getting testimonials from family members that cremations were done for free at GCC run centres.

Corporation deputy commissioner (works) Meghanath Reddy said vigilance officials are also being asked to conduct regular checks at these centres to ensure those collecting bribes are nabbed. “All crematorium staff will be given a blue uniform with tags and also identity cards for public to differentiate them from brokers,” Reddy said. Another development, especially in central and south Chennai, has been that sanitary inspectors have been asked to bury or cremate only those who lived in that ward or zone.

For instance, the crematorium at Triplicane was overburdened till a fortnight ago with more than 20 bodies turning up at their gates everyday. “This was because government hospitals were sending it to use as we were the closest,” an official at the crematorium said.

After intervention by senior corporation officials and local MLAs to allow last rites of only local residents, the number has dropped to 10, the official added.

UNDER WATCH: A burial ground in the city