The grave concerns of graveyards in Karachi

The graveyards in Karachi are out of space and there is immediate need of new graveyards in all six districts of the city.

Graveyards are being extended first time since 1990 as this has become an immediate need of the city.

In the last 49 days, more the 3,000 dead bodies were brought to almost 30 graveyards of Karachi, according to the provincial capital’s administration.

The report claimed that according to Karachi Metropolitan Corporation’s (KMC) data, 681 dead bodies were brought in Mohammed Shah cemetery, 430 in Siddiqabad, 273 in Sakhi Hassan graveyard, 181 in the C-1 Area cemetery, and 76 in Yasinabad graveyard.

The citizens are concerned about the situation, citing a “lack of capacity” in graveyards of all the districts of Karachi.

The cemeteries of the city are out of space and the people are compelled to pay Rs 50,000 to 100,000 for a grave to bury their loved ones.

Unfortunately, the relatives of deceased have to pay huge sum of money for the departed one.

It is said that Karachi Metropolitan Corporation was responsible for maintenance and establishment of new graveyard in the city.

However, it is hard to fulfill this duty in the available resources. Sindh government did not release the quarter of last year ADP fund and the first and second quarter of this year. This situation resulted in halt of works of three model graveyards in the city.

Notably, death is painful for most people, hooked up to ventilators as they struggle to breathe. Closure seems even further with these deaths as most families and loved ones of the victims do not get a chance to exchange parting words or embraces. There are no funerals to plan or proper burial ceremonies as many countries impose strict restrictions on these in fear of spreading the disease.

However, a few close relatives of the deceased could enter the cemetery for burial, adding that the body would be brought into the cemetery with protective measures and no last sighting would be allowed. The number of relatives who can attend burials has been restricted to two or three.

The bodies are first wrapped in plastic to make sure there is be no leakage of fluids which could spread the virus.

Many people working at graveyards are taking extra precautions during burials, such as disposable layers over their clothes, to prevent any transmission.

The gravediggers are unsung heroes in this time of the novel coronavirus pandemic. They are also facing a precarious situation of their own. The pandemic is giving them sleepless nights as they now fear the risk of contracting Covid-19.

In a nutshell, as the population increases and urban land dwindles, Karachi’s residents – both living and deceased – are faced with a shortage of land. With spaces in graveyards already running out, several burial sites have also been taken over through China cutting.

The sight of residential structures built in cemeteries may be eerie, but they are not uncommon. The situation has created an opportunity for grave diggers to rent out space in closed graveyards in return for an exorbitant fee. Cemetery workers are reportedly charging between Rs10,000 and Rs15,000 for a grave.

As a matter of fact, Rs2,500 is supposed to be charged for a single grave at a graveyard as per the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC). However, opportunists continue to take bribes to create space in KMC graveyards that have been closed for burial. Contractors have popped up in many of the larger graveyards of the city. Grave diggers at such cemeteries have created territories and blocks. Each block holder has his own price list for construction, renovation and maintenance of graves.

According to the reports of Baaghi TV, the land mafia continues to reign supreme in many old graveyards of the city. In Mangophir, an ancient burial site near the shrine of Sakhi Sultan Baba has been encroached upon by the land mafia. The encroachers bulldozed centuries-old graves and built illegal structures in their place.

Nevertheless, the authorities have reserved five cemeteries for the victims of the virus in Karachi recently. The places reserved for the burial of coronavirus victims are: Muhammad Shah, Surjani, Mawach Goth, Qur’angi No. 6 and Gulshan-e-Zia graveyards.

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