Indian officials carry COVID-19 deceased on shoulders after family refuse to cremate him

Indian officials carry COVID-19 deceased on shoulders after family refuse to cremate him

A family refused to cremate a man, who died of COVID-19, forcing PPE-clad officials to carry out his last rites.

The family members, who live in Hasanpur village near Chhapra in eastern India, were afraid that they may contract the infection if they came into contact with the deceased man.

A team of officials led by Dr Abhishek Kumar Sinha, who is a nodal officer to manage the health crisis, went to the home of the deceased on June 7 and carried him away in a makeshift stretcher.

After a few steps, the stretcher broke, forcing them to reach their vehicle carrying the man on their shoulders.

He was cremated later.

The young man had returned home from Mumbai and was sent to a quarantine centre at a local school on May 17.

After 14 days of stay, he was sent home where he developed high temperature and was treated at a local hospital, which referred him to a government hospital in Patna.

But before the family could shift him, he passed away.

Officials said his samples tested positive for COVID-19 virus while all his family members proved to be negative.