Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government has issued guidelines for the burial of the unidentified bodies recovered from the landslide-struck areas of Wayanad. As per the official records, 66 of the 218 bodies are not identified yet. Addressing the media on Saturday, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that directions would be given to the local administration authorities regarding the funeral of these bodies.
According to the government order, the funerals will take place at public cemeteries in the Kalpetta municipality and the panchayats of Vythiri, Muttil, Kaniyambatta, Padinjarathara, Thondarnad, Edavaka, and Mullankolli. Registration Department IG Sreedhanya Suresh has been appointed as the nodal officer responsible for managing the bodies, overseeing their handover, and conducting the funerals.
An identification number will be given to each body prior to the inquest and post-mortem procedures. Photographs of the bodies and any ornaments found on them will be recorded. The DNA samples and dental details too will be documented.
The guidelines stipulate that the funerals must be conducted within 72 hours of the inquest. The government strictly directed that all those unidentified bodies should be buried and the locations must be reported to the Meppadi Panchayat authority. Cremation of such bodies is strictly restricted. These guidelines also apply to unclaimed bodies and those with disputes staking claims, as well as various body parts.
In response to requests for religious rites during the funerals of unidentified bodies, the Chief Minister had directed that the panchayat to conduct an all-faith prayer during the funeral.
According to Revenue Minister K. Rajan, 127 different body parts have been recovered from the disaster site and will be buried separately. The respective DNA number will be displayed on each grave. The minister also stated that people from all religious groups will be allowed to conduct after-death prayers.