Bidding them peace, in death

With public support, the Siasat daily has been undertaking burial of the bodies of Muslims, which lie unclaimed at the city’s morgues

About 1,800 bodies, 10 long years of service and still going strong. The burial exercise for unclaimed dead bodies languishing at the city’s morgues, organised by the Siasat Urdu daily, continues unhindered with public support.

The initiative by the newspaper began on an experimental basis following a public representation, but now it continues as an obligation.

“Initially we took up the work with our own money, but later we started making use of the Millat fund money,”

Siasat News Editor Amir Ali Khan says.

Unclaimed bodies of Muslims, from the morgues of the Gandhi Hospital and the Osmania General Hospital, are buried in accordance with religious rites at different in graveyards in the city.

“A few people supported us in the undertaking. A few donated money, some facilitated official procedures and a handful offered free land to bury the dead,” Mr. Khan reveals.

A sum of Rs. 2,500 is spent on each body, which includes the cost of shroud, the digging of graves and transport expenses.

“The aim is to bid a dignified adieu to every man. Bodies keep decomposing at the morgue and are later cremated in heaps or dumped in a single grave, which is against Islamic principles,” Mr. Khan adds.