CHENNAI: A family in Thirumazhisai near Chennai had to wait nearly two-and-a-half hours to perform the last rites of a family member due to an alleged power outage at the crematorium on Sunday. The incident came to light after the deceased’s son, Vinoth Bharathi, posted videos of his ordeal online.
In the videos, Bharathi said his family had been waiting with his father’s body, but no one came forward to help them. He said they could have explored other alternatives, including cremation using firewood, had they been informed of the problem earlier.
Appealing to the authorities, Bharathi said the family did n’t know what to do.
Responding to the incident, Electricity Minister C T R Nirmal Kumar said on X that there had been no disruption in electricity supply and that the crematorium’s internal electrical infrastructure was maintained by the village panchayat. The minister said a fault in an internal cable had affected the cremation.
As the panchayat electrician took time to repair it, a team from the electricity board rushed to the spot following a request from the panchayat, arranged a generator and helped the family proceed with the last rites. The team also assisted in identifying and repairing the fault, the minister said.
Addressing media persons on Monday, Bharathi, however, said he had informed both the local body and the electricity office but did not receive any response.
“TNEB officials claimed that they had arranged a generator to restore power. This is completely wrong. I paid for the generator from my own pocket. I have a receipt for that. The minister should understand the ground reality,” he said.
