TIRUPATI: The body of a person who died of Covid-19 in Tirupati was taken to a burial ground in a JCB on Monday morning. The video of the incident went viral on social media.
According to Municipal Commissioner PS Girisha, the civic staff were forced to use the JCB as the body was very heavy. He claimed that the patient’s family was aware of the situation. “With the consent of the family members, we used the JCB to lift the body, took it to the burial ground, and performed the last rites following Covid-19 protocols,” he added. A few other officials said that the patient was weighing 175 kg.
“Earlier, we thought of taking the body to an electric crematorium, but as the patient’s body was very high, we could not lift it,” they added. It may be mentioned that the Covid-19 patient from Tirupati was admitted to Sri Venkateswara Institute of Medical Sciences (SVIMS) a few days ago. He had been suffering from obesity and respiratory illness. He died while undergoing treatment in the hospital on Sunday. Meanwhile, Chittoor district reported 73 coronavirus cases on Monday.
Of the 73 cases, 33 were reported from Tirupati Urban, seven each from Nindra and Puttur, two each from Madanapalle, Palasamudram, Ramakuppam, Srikahalasti and Thavanampalli and one each from Chandragiri, Nagalapuram, Chittoor, Nagari, Pulicherla, Sathyavedu and Vedukurukuppam and nine are returnees from other districts. As many as 976 persons have been discharged from Covid-19 hospitals in the district.