Number of cremations spikes in city
The Hindu
16 bodies cremated at Velangadu burial ground on Saturday; trend is similar in other crematoria
At the Greater Chennai Corporation Velangadu burial ground, which was in the news for the burial of neurosurgeon Simon Hercules who died of COVID-19 a year ago, the number of bodies being cremated every day has risen steadily over the month. Sources say the trend is similar in the other major cremation/burial grounds in the city. On Saturday, at least 16 bodies were cremated at the Velangadu crematorium, including those of four residents with COVID-19, by 8 p.m. Before the start of the second wave of the contagion in Chennai, the burial ground would register an average of seven cremations a day. On Saturday, residents could be seen waiting even after 8 p.m. to complete the cremation of their near and dear. Velangadu, which used to operate from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. with two bio-gas cremation furnaces, is now operating from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.A crowd comprising farmers, researchers, professors, students, and horticulture enthusiasts thronged the ICAR-Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (IIHR), Hesaraghatta, Bengaluru, on Friday for the inaugural ceremony of the Triphal Diversity Show which showcased 300 mango, 100 jackfruit, and 100 banana genotypes in collaboration with ICAR-National Research Centre for Banana, Tiruchirappalli.
The State government on Friday constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by Additional Director-General of Police, Manish Kharbikar of the Economic Offences division of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to probe the alleged multi-crore scam in the government-run Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation.