131 days after Balasore train accident, Odisha govt starts cremation of unclaimed bodies
One hundred and thirty one days after the Balasore train accident, the officials have decided to cremate the 28 unclaimed bodies of the tragic incident. The bodies will be cremated by the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) after receiving them from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Bhubaneswar.
AIIMS Bhubaneswar Medical Superintendent Dilip Parida said, “Finally, we have come to the logical conclusion and in the process, so many agencies were involved from central ministries to state government…Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) is the final disposing authority. Whatever approval and permissions we had sought have come. Now we are handing over the bodies to the health officer BMC…A total of 28 bodies are left with us and BMC has started taking out the bodies.”
BMC Commissioner Vijay Amruta Kulange informed the media that three dead body carriers have been deployed to move bodies. “We have started taking over those dead bodies for further cremation,” he said.
According to a statement, BMC has prepared a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the cremation of unidentified bodies. “The entire process from receiving the bodies to cremation will be videographed,” it added.
Sources said the BMC commenced the process after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which has been investigating the Balasore train accident, wrote to the Khurda district collector, requesting the disposal of the bodies in a scientific manner. The bodies were in the AIIMS Bhubaneswar since the accident occurred in June.
Two hundred and ninety five people were killed in a triple train crash involving the Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express, Bengaluru-Howrah Super Fast Express and a goods train. The Coromandel Express collided with a stationary goods train, derailing most of its coaches around 7 p.m. on June 2 near the Bahanaga Bazar station. Coromandel Express also whiplashed the last few coaches of the Bengaluru-Howrah SF Express, which was passing by at the same time.
