Lucknow A family in Sant Kabir Nagar of eastern Uttar Pradesh used an earthmover to transport the body of a relative, who had died after testing positive for COVID-19, for burial.
A video of the incident was widely shared on social media.
The COVID-19 victim’s son said that his father died at home in their village after testing positive in a hospital in Gorakhpur.
“We thought this how it is being done everywhere. We did not have any information,” he told journalists when asked why they used an earthmover to carry the body and dump it in a pit.
Village pradhan Triyoganand Gautam said he had offered to take the body for cremation. “But when his own children did not touch [the body], we withdrew,” he said.
Floating bodies
Meanwhile, six bodies were found floating in the Ganga in Fatehpur district, an official said.
Pramod Jha, Sub-divisional Magistrate of Fatehpur, said the bodies were floating along the banks towards Rae Bareli.
“Six bodies were pulled out,” he told reporters. The corpses had decomposed.
Since the bodies could not be identified, the final rites were conducted at Bhitora ghat with full honours, he said.
