NGO offering to cremate COVID victims

New Delhi, Apr 30 (PTI) United Sikhs, a human rights and advocacy organisation, is offering dignified cremation services here to those who have succumbed due to coronavirus, a statement said on Friday.

The United Nations-affiliated group is approaching the families who are unable to arrange a funeral either because they are sick, scared or too weak to leave homes for themselves being COVID positive, according to a statement.

"Last rites of more than 350 persons who have succumbed to the deadly virus have been performed," said Pritam Singh, a director of United Sikhs.

"We are offering help to the families in distress irrespective of their religion and caste. We ensure respect to the dead as per their religion," he said.

The group's contact numbers have been circulated across the hospitals and crematoriums.

"We are continuously getting calls from the social organisations and the distressed families. Hospital and crematoriums are also approaching us," Singh added.

United Sikhs is performing around 14-15 cremations or burials every day without charging a single penny.

The non-government organisation works with the motto of 'recognize human race as one', transport the dead from hospitals and homes to the crematoriums on its own, the statement said.

Because of acute shortage of firewood to perform cremations, three trucks full of wood have been arranged from Punjab, it added. PTI NIT HMB