Locals in Karasa area in the outskirts of Visakhapatnam entered into a heated argument with officials over the burial of a COVID-19 deceased following which the officials buried the body at a different burial ground.
The incident took place on Saturday.
A woman from Vizianagaram was undergoing treatment at VIMS, Visakhapatnam. She breathed her last on Saturday. The hospital staff buried her body at Marripalem burial ground near the Karasa area.
Local people, who saw the van returning after burial, stopped the vehicle and got the body removed from there. Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Sastry then shifted the body to another burial ground in the city for final rites.
A local said: "A van was standing at burial ground here. The van driver said that a body was brought. He confirmed the body was of a corona patient. Then we called former corporator Sridhar to the spot."
"He was at some other place. He suggested us to lock the gate. All people in the neighbourhood stood at the gate. Meanwhile, officials came. Meanwhile, Sridhar, police, GVMC and Health Department officials also came. We asked why the body was brought here all the way from Vizianagaram. They should have buried there itself. At last, they removed the body and took it away from here," the local said.
Chief Medical Officer Sastry said that the rules won't permit to take the body back to Vizianagaram. "We are educated people and we have to think. We took the utmost care while burying the body. We gave them uniforms, shirts, masks. Later, we stised the area with sodium hypochlorite. In fact, I objected at the beginning only, asked them to take the body back to Vizianagaram."
Sridhar, former corporator, said: "A woman from Vizianagaram died due to corona. Her body was buried in our area burial ground, though there were many other burial grounds in Visakhapatnam city. Locals demanded to shift the body from here. The Chief Medical Officer finally shifted the body."
( With inputs from ANI )