Coronavirus bodies disposed using earthmovers, official inquiry ordered
By Vivek Raj | Galatta | Jul 11, 2020, 05:01 pm
A video of coronavirus victims' bodies being buried on Thursday using an earthmover vehicle in Andhra Pradesh's Nellore district went viral on social media. Since then, an inquiry has been ordered, Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) Hussian Saheb said on Friday. The video showed bodies of COVID-19 victims being carried using a JCB machine with workers clad in PPE suits then taking them to bury on the banks of Penna river close to Madaraju Gudur.
The video caused an uproar in Andhra Pradesh with Nellore Collector M.V. Seshagiri Babu then ordered a probe into the incident. Heading the inquiry will be Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) Hussian Saheb, who has been appointed as a special officer. Speaking about the incident, Hussain Saheb said, "A video showing the burial of COVID-19 bodies in Nellore became viral. An inquiry has been ordered by the District Collector. I have been appointed as an inquiry officer." He further added saying, "Inquiry is going on. After completion of inquiry I will submit the final report to the district collector,".
It is to be noted that this is the third such incident that has been reported in Andhra Pradesh in the past one month. The two previous incidents had occurred in a similar fashion in Srikakulam and Chittoor districts. Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu took to his Twitter page to say that the visuals of the coronavirus victims' being disposed of in such a manner was painful and disrespectful. He tweeted, "This is happening time & again. Y.S. Jagan government must offer an apology to the grieving families who wished for a respectful departure for their loved ones,".
Andhra Pradesh recorded 1,608 new coronavirus cases on Friday taking the state's total tally to 25,422. Among the cases, 11,936 persons are said to be active cases, while 981 people have been discharged in the past 24 hours, taking the total number of discharged patients to 13,194.