Delhi: Mom unwell and brother jobless, Class XII boy handles Covid bodies

NEW DELHI: A Class XII student aspiring to study medicine has taken up the job of handling bodies of Covid-19 patients to manage his mother's treatment and his siblings' school fees. "We are barely making ends meet after my elder brother lost his job during the lockdown," explained 20-year-old Chand Mohammad from Seelampur in northeast Delhi.
For some time, the family survived on food provided by neighbours and the little that the brothers earned doing odd jobs.A week ago, Mohammad joined a company that deployed him as a sweeper at Lok Nayak Hospital. The job requires him to handle bodies of coronavirus victims.
"I accepted the job after exhausting all other options. I realise this is a dangerous job that puts me at risk of infection, but I need the job," said Mohammad. "Our family of parents, three sisters and two brothers is struggling. Right now, we need food and medicines for my mother."
Mohammad's mother suffers from a thyroid disorder and needs medicines urgently. The Class XII student's three sisters are also in school. He hopes that his first salary will help pay the fees for all four of them. "I offer namaaz before leaving home for work. The almighty will take care of me," said Mohammad, who aspires to study medicine.
Every day, the young boy handles two-three bodies along with another sweeper. "We are required to put the bodies into the ambulance, take them to the crematorium and place them on a stretcher at the crematorium," he said. "You have to do all this wearing a PPE suit, which limits movement and is suffocating. In this heat, you are soon bathed in your own sweat."
On Tuesday evening, Chand handled a body on his own. "It took me some time. I was gasping for breath by the end of it," he said. "I heard a doctor say the body had been lying in the mortuary for a month with no claimant. The person who packed it did not do his job properly, so when I was getting it out of the ambulance, the cover slipped off and some liquid spilled on my thighs."
What bothers him is that people handling high-risk tasks, like himself, are not covered by insurance by their employers. "The most dangerous job in the world right now earns me around Rs 17,000 a month," he sighed.
The lad had tried desperately to take a loan, but was eventually forced to take up this job. "My parents ask me about my day at work. They pray for my safety. My mother cries a lot, but I make her understand," Mohammad said. He makes sure to take a bath as soon as he reaches home and keeps some distance from his family members.