After several corpses were spotted in the Ganga in Bihar’s Buxar district on Monday, Bihar Minister Sanjay Kumar Jha said in a series of tweets that the state government has advised the UP administration to be vigilant regarding the matter.
Jha, who is the Minister of Water Resources and Information and Public Relations, said, “The Bihar Government is seized of the matter of unfortunate case of floating mortal remains in river Ganga, near Chausa village in Buxar district. The bodies have floated into Bihar from UP. Upon postmortem, our doctors have confirmed that these are 4-5 days old bodies,” he said.
He said that 71 bodies have been taken out from the river in the district and their last rites have been performed. A net has also been placed in the Ganga in Ranighat, bordering UP and Bihar, to stop any similar incident from happening again, he informed.
Jha also said Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has been pained at both the tragedy as well as harm to the river Ganges. “He has always been particular about the purity and uninterrupted flow of the river and has asked the administration to intensify patrolling to ensure this is not repeated…Advise all to give all respect to those dead, and Maa Ganges,” Jha said.
Meanwhile, the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) on Tuesday directed that dumping of dead bodies in the river Ganga be stopped “immediately”.
The order came after dead bodies, partially burnt bodies and unclaimed or unidentified corpses, suspected to be of Covid victims, were found floating along the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, “causing shock and fear among the public”.
In the notice issued by Rajiv Ranjan Mishra, NMCG Director General, the organisation said that standard practice(s) are being followed for the disposal of unidentified dead bodies/unclaimed corpses found in the Ganga and its tributaries, and added that appropriate funding assistance, if required, will be considered for approval by NMCG after receipt of such requests.
“All unidentified dead bodies/unclaimed corpses of suspected Covid victims should be properly disposed of in accordance with the Covid-safety protocol of Government of India Guidelines on Covid 19 Dead Body Management,” the notice said.
It further directed the concerned officials to ensure strict vigilance along the length of the river within the territorial jurisdiction of the district to prevent and check such future incidences of people dumping dead bodies in the Ganga and its tributaries and of any other activities hazardous for the rivers and health and hygiene in the area.
“Take necessary action to address the issue at the earliest and submit an Action Taken Report to NMCG within 14 (fourteen) days,” the statement added.
Meanwhile, Buxar District Magistrate Aman Samir informed the media that a narrative is being set that due to a lack of wooden logs for the cremation or the poor facing financial issues, dead bodies are being immersed in the Ganga in Buxar. (With ANI inputs)