Stranded abroad and unable to reach home even for the funeral of parents or close family members due to lockdown restrictions, young professionals working elsewhere have no means other than video calls to see glimpses of last rites for their dearly departed.
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An example of this sad situation was seen in Odisha’s Berhampur on Saturday. K. Narasimha Subdhi (70) breathed his last due to a heart attack at his residence in Berhampur’s Kapileswarpeta Street. His only son K. Sudip, is a software engineer working in America for the past one year. He had planned to visit home in April but the lockdown shattered his plans.
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Upon receiving information of his father’s death, Mr. Sudip had no means of reaching Berhampur to perform the last rites for him. He had spoken to his father a mere half hour before he suffered the heart attack, family members said.
Friends and relatives performed the funeral. The pyre was lit by Mr. Sudip’s brother-in-law. A son’s wish to carry his father’s bier on his last journey could not be fulfilled. He watched the last rites performed at the Nilakantheswar cremation ground here over a video call.
A similar incident occurred at Laikera in Jharsuguda district of Odisha, when an elderly person with two sons passed away on March 17. His funeral was conducted after two days, when his older on, who is working in Mumbai, managed to return home. But the younger son, who lives in the United States, was left with no means but to watch the final rites over a video call.
