AHMEDABAD: For many residents of D Cabin and Dharmanagar localities in Sabarmati, the name Dharmendra Nayak may not ring a bell, but ask for ‘Bakabhai’ and they will immediately point you to the crematorium in the area. The Sabarmati resident has been helping people cremate bodies of Covid patients since last year.
“I have a job as a store manager at an establishment near Jodhpur crossroads. However, if I get a call about a cremation, my priorities are clear. If needed, I will leave early and make up for it the next day. So, I attend many funerals. Last year was all about Covid deaths. This year too, the number of deaths have been rising over the past few days, and I help families cremate bodies with proper Covid protocol,” says Nayak.
Why does he participate in the cremations even when the deceased is not a close relative or friend? Nayak says that nowadays people who know the rituals are thinning fast. “My father started taking me to cremations when I was 16 years of age. His philosophy was that it is okay if we cannot attend someone’s wedding or auspicious events, but we must stand with the family in the death of a near and dear one. Today many do not know how to bathe a body, tie it perfectly and perform the last rites. I try to help people in the last journey of their loved ones,” he says.
Talk about Covid deaths and Nayak has several anecdotes to share: “I might have cremated about 50 persons with Covid protocols since the start of the pandemic. Earlier there was too much fear, but gradually, the stigma reduced. In about 15-odd incidents, even the family members of the deceased were not present as they were either in hospitals or ad tested positive and could not participate. On such occasions, we performed the last rites.”
Nayak, is now teaching his son and others the details of the last rites, so that ‘traditions don’t go extinct’.
