Dignity in death is a birthright of each living thing.
– Bhagat Singh
In mid-April, a neurosurgeon based in Chennai passed away after contacting COVID-19 while treating patients at his health facility. When his family and colleagues tried to bury him in accordance with the rules given by the Ministry of Health and Welfare Services for safe burial/ cremation of COVID-19 patients, they were attacked by an unruly mob of people who refused to allow them to do the burial, at that spot.
The attack was so brutal that the drivers of the ambulance carrying the body suffered head injuries, the family of the deceased and the accompanying doctors were forced to flee the spot. The incident sparked severe outrage among the medical community and rightly so and everyone had one question in mind– Can a doctor not have a peaceful, dignified burial or cremation?
This shocking incident comes after the many attacks on doctors across the country, more so on those who have been frontline warriors to fight this pandemic. However, all they met with were stones pelted at them, and other forms of violence meted out to them while doing their duty. Since then, the Government of India has issued The Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Ordinance 2020 under which acts of violence against healthcare workers can be punished with imprisonment of 3 months to 5 years and a fine of ₹50,000 to ₹2,00,000. In case of grievous injury, imprisonment term can be for up to 7 years, with a fine of ₹1,00,000 to ₹5,00,000.
While it is great that the government has now enacted legislation to protect healthcare workers serving the community, as a society which prides itself as rich in culture and spirituality, why do we need such laws in place to ensure we respect an individual’s dignity in life and even in death? Shouldn’t this behaviour be inbuilt and come naturally to us humans? Does it really need to be reinforced?
It is the very ethos of humanity to respect the dead and grief of a family who has just lost a loved one and do our best to make the process of grieving easier for them. The responsibility of citizens to preserve the dignity of a deceased and his family becomes two-fold when he/she is a health care worker, who has lost their lives in the service of society. No one should need a reminder to do the same. No honour, appreciation or mark of respect we offer can ever compensate for a family member’s loss, yet we as a society, far from appreciating the family’s sacrifice and sorrow, we seem intent on multiplying it. The actions described above can only be described as heaping insult onto the injuries of grieving families and the medical community.
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Also, what about ordinary citizens who have lost the battle to the disease? There have been reports about even their burials or cremations being obstructed in certain parts of the country due to the fear of the virus spreading from cadavers. Don’t their families too deserve to say a peaceful goodbye? There have been reports from across the country where people in areas around crematoriums and cemeteries refused to allow the burial of COVID patients and have asked local authorities to perform the last rites and burials in more remote areas.
The swiftness with which the corona pandemic has swept the country, it has created undeniable anxiety and panic in people’s minds. Citizens scared of being infected, want to take every precaution to minimise their lives. One of the main reason cited for this is the lack of awareness. People are too scared for their lives. However, awareness must be created that the guidelines given by the ministry for burial/ cremation are based on scientific evidence and ensure that the chances of spread of infection due to these are minimal. Civic services and hospitals are ensuring they are followed. Every precaution possible is being taken.
The role of citizens in this pandemic is to respect all government directives. It is their moral responsibility to respect all frontline workers and aid them and their families in whatever way possible. We cannot expect our doctors, nurses, police officers, municipal workers to risk their lives for us when we are unable to offer them dignity in life and death. Let us not behave in a way, that will make them regret choosing the noble professions they represent. The courage and strength needed to fulfil these roles, in times like these, is unimaginable!
Let us pray for the safety and well-being of these frontline warriors and vow to respect these brave individuals!
