No records of bodies cremated or buried is maintained in private burial grounds
22 Apr, 2012An application filed under the RTI Act has revealed that no records of the bodies cremated or buried are maintained at two places in Padi under the Ambattur zone of Chennai where hereditary caretakers are looking after the facilities. The PIO-cum-health officer of the Chennai Corporation’s zone 7 replied that “We issue death certificates after receiving a residence certificate enclosed with the form issued by a medical officer of a government hospital. As these burial grounds are being maintained by hereditary caretakers, we don't have any records for them. The corporation does not employ any person at these places. We don't collecting cash for burials or cremations here.”
It raises the possibility of misuse of the facility by anyone who may come to bury or cremate a body without a death certificate. Such a situation may exist in many parts of the country and there is a need to regulate such private burial grounds.