The body of an elderly woman who had tested positive for Covid-19 remained at her home in Kestopur in North 24 Parganas’ Bidhannagar Municipality area for almost 18 hours before being cremated on Friday.
The deceased was identified as Usha Rani Mondal, a resident of Kestopur’s Samarpalli area. She used to live with her son, who tried to seek government agencies’ help to cremate the body, but was unsuccessful, sources said. The family called the local police station, the municipal corporation, and Swastha Bhavan, but did not receive any help.
“She died at around 6.30 pm yesterday [Thursday]. But the death certificate could be issued only today afternoon due to which the family had to wait for so long,” said one of Mondal’s neighbours. Her body was taken for cremation late on Friday afternoon in accordance with government guidelines. “We are really scared now of being infected. Local administration must work and improve its response time,” said another neighbour.