Crammed cremation grounds, poor health infra, govt denial: Why UP is the next Covid hotspot in the making

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Hindus do not burn their dead at night. But the burning embers from the pyre until late at night over crematoriums in Uttar Pradesh, similar to those in other states, presents a different story.

“There is no time to wait for the morning. The next pile of bodies is waiting to be their turn,” said Azad, who is responsible for conducting the last rites of Covid-19 patients in Baikunth Dham in Lucknow.

But if projections are to be expected, the worst is yet to come. The centre’s health advisors have sounded the alarm: UP is well on its way to becoming the next big Covid-19 hotspot.

By April 30, the state could report the highest daily cases in India at 119,604, the forecasts said. It is followed by Maharashtra with 99,665 cases and Delhi with 67,134 cases.

Pyrene from Covid-19 victims who burned at the Bhaisakund cremation site in Lucknow. (Photo: PTI)

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As of April 27, India’s most populous state reported a total of over 11.2 lakh cases, including 33,551 in the last 24 hours. According to official figures, the total death toll has reached 11,414.

The opposition has accused the state government of underestimating Covid-19 numbers and trying to paint a rosy picture.

Pyrenees burn around the clock

Baikunth Dham Crematorium does not currently accept a person who dies of natural causes.

“Today there were 60 Covid-19 deaths. We have to burn the corpses day and night because we cannot leave them lying around and wait for the sun to rise. At this point, people have to leave such ritual practices behind them,” said Azad.

Claims that the numbers are not adequately reported also hold up. While 60 Covid-19 deaths are reported from a crematorium in Lucknow, official government data says the city reported 39 deaths as of April 27. This equates to a mismatch of 21 deaths in one day and in just one city.

The crematorium in Bhainsakund in the heart of Lucknow, witnesses a long line of people who have come to the final rites from their near and dear ones. These people are given a token number and have to wait for their turn.

ALSO READ | After grief, exorbitant rates at UP cremation sites worsen the Covid horror for families

“I have received token number 11, which will take 2-3 hours,” said Sunil Singh, who is waiting to perform the final rites of his aunt’s son. Some had to wait over four hours.

“Nobody knew he was dead for days”

Others have tragic stories of hospital mismanagement to tell, bearing testimony to the crumbling health infrastructure.

“When my uncle was fighting for his life, the hospitals asked us to get a letter from the CMO in Lucknow to get a bed,” said Sanya Mahajan, whose uncle Rajiv Mahajan’s oxygen began to drop after testing Covid-positive.

“After much fighting, he was admitted to Lok Bandhu Hospital in Lucknow, only to have died a few hours later. But the family didn’t know he had died. He was taken to the isolation ward on April 23rd. We took food for him the next day and someone received it. On the third day, when we were giving food to the patient in ward number 11, we were informed that no patient with that name had been admitted to the ward, “said Sanya.

For a whole day their search yielded no results. The police called on April 25 and said we had not yet claimed the body. “Nobody knew he was dead for days,” complains Sanya.

From hospitals to burial sites, the story is the same: abandonment by officials, family helplessness and lack of oxygen, hospital beds and medication.

The reality on the ground is more shocking than the numbers show.

“I walked from pillar to pillar for three days to be tested,” said a man who had come to a Kanpur crematorium for the final rites of a loved one.

Many died from lack of oxygen

Manoj was seen crying and pleading with his hands clasped in front of the KMC hospital in Meerut. “Please save my wife from dying,” he shouted.

Manoj’s wife was admitted to the KMC hospital and needed constant oxygen to survive. Eight patients have died of lack of oxygen in this hospital, said Sandhya Chauhan, director of the nursing school.

Even patients admitted to this hospital have used oxygen cylinders that were “managed” by their families.

The Shekhar Heart and Lung Center in Lucknow’s Indira Nagar area had made SOS calls for oxygen. At that hospital, about 100 patients gasped for oxygen for several hours. Two patients reportedly died afterwards.

Two others are believed to have died at Avadh Hospital and the Heart Center in Lucknow’s Alambagh area.

ALSO READ | Bhopal crematoria flooded with corpses: 187 cremated according to Covid standards, while records show only 5 deaths

The KGMU, which is believed to be the largest hospital in Lucknow, has also reported a death due to the unavailability of oxygen.

Lucknow is the largest Covid-19 hotspot in UP, alongside Meerut, Varanasi, Kanpur and Prayagraj.

The government remains in denial

The powers that are there completely deny. Prime Minister Yogi Adityanath said new cases had declined and there was no shortage of beds, oxygen and life-saving drugs.

Cabinet Minister Suresh Khanna said: “There has not been a single death from lack of oxygen in UP.”

Awanish Awasthi, additional chief secretary (at home), said Lucknow had received additional oxygen. Lucknow commissioner Ranjan Kumar said that all hospitals large and small were supplied with oxygen.

Hope?

There might be a glimmer of hope, however. IIT Kanpur professor Manindra Agarwal, who is also part of a committee of experts appointed by the center, believes the second wave has peaked not only in India but also in the worst-hit states of Maharashtra, Delhi and UP.

According to research by Agarwal and his team, the daily cases will decrease from the first week of May.

ALSO SEE | In Lucknow, burning pyrenees erect barricades around crematoria




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