BENGALURU: Only one of two machines at the crematorium here is working, and that means a long queue of bodies every day.
On some days, 15 to 20 bodies lie waiting. A body needs an hour-and-a-half to two hours to burn down completely.
Sometimes, the BBMP authorities divert bodies to the crematoriums at Peenya and Laxmipura.
Ramanjaneya, Assistant Executive Engineer, BBMP, said “The machine has not been working for two months. Yes, it is putting people to inconvenience, but we will have it repaired in a week.”
He said maintenance had already been in progress for 10 days.
Manjunath Babu, municipal councillor, said, “People have complained about it. I have visited the crematorium three times in the past three months. The repairs will be done this week.”
Waste Point
At Harischandra Ghat, where bodies are buried, the problem is different. The BBMP contractor is using it as a dump yard to segregate waste. “For three to four years, we have had no power supply here,” a worker said.
The waste is taken to Sigehalli, but workers there refuse it if it is mixed with leaves and chocolate wrappers.
“We don’t have a proper place to segregate waste. That’s why we are doing it at Harischandra Ghat,” contractor Henjarappa said.
The workers would earlier dump household waste on the road and segregate it, but shifted to the graveyard after citizens complained.
“This is the only place available. Soon, we will find a solution to this problem,” Chandrakala Girish, municipal councillor, said.
Ashwath Narayan, MLA, said it was the BBMP’s responsibility to create awareness among people to separate wet and dry waste.
“They should not collect waste from individual houses if it is not segregated. If the BBMP refuses to pick up waste a couple of times, people will become more responsible,” he said.
Many families take bodies elsewhere after they see the filth at the burial ground. The atmosphere is not conducive for the last rites. People can’t even enter the place because of the stench, according to a worker.
G Kumar Naik, BBMP Commissioner, said, “People should segregate waste. This problem will take care of itself then.”
They should not collect waste from houses if it is not segregated. If the BBMP refuses to pick up waste a couple of times, people will become more responsible Ashwath Narayan, MLA