Wayanad: A burial ground prepared on 64 cents of land at Puthumala became the final resting place of unidentified victims of the Wayanad landslide. An all-faith prayer meeting was held prior to the burial.
Six unidentified bodies were buried at the crematorium run by Kalpetta municipality on Friday and Saturday. This is the same place where five people had gone missing during the Puthumala landslide in 2019, said Samshad Marakkar, Wayanad district panchayat president.
Twenty-nine bodies and 85 body parts were brought to Puthumala burial ground. However, only eight bodies were buried on Sunday. The remaining will be laid to rest on Monday. Body parts will also be buried here. The DMO (District Medical Officer) has handed over the list of bodies to the police, said Marakkar.
The government has issued a standard operating procedure for the burial. As per the SoP, in case identification is not possible, the police shall release the body to the district administration for further action after 72 hours from the time of inquest.
The district administration shall inform Meppadi panchayat and the panchayat/municipality in which the burial site is located. In cases where the doctor concerned has advised, in writing, immediate burial due to decomposition or otherwise, the body shall be released to the district administration immediately without any waiting period. The disposal of bodies shall only be in the form of burial.
The district administration will have to ensure the burial of the body with clear cut markings of the identification number at the spot of burial. The burial shall take place in the presence of officials of the panchayat/municipality in which the burial site is located. The district administration will maintain necessary records of the burial location details for reference.
