Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Aug 13: After the villagers successfully stopped the funeral of a woman who died of coronavirus infection for three days, the district administration of Mandya put its foot down and performed the funeral of the patient at her native place, Nelamakanahalli in Mandya district, on Wednesday August 12.

The woman had died in the Mandya district hospital on Sunday. For the last three days, officials, family members and villagers were involved in tug-of-war over the funeral, as the villagers resisted efforts to conduct it in the village. Even though the family of the lady owns land in the village, the villagers were firm in not allowing the funeral to be performed. The body was sent back to the district hospital.

Representational image

On Tuesday, the officials tried to perform the funeral in the government pasture land in Hosahalli village but villagers there protested by blocking the road. Then the officials planned to bury the body in the government pasture land in Byadarahalli village but locals protested there too. The body was finally taken back to the district hospital.

Under the orders of the district deputy commissioner, Dr M V Venkatesh, the funeral was performed in the own land of the family at Nelamakanahalli with police protection on Wednesday.

Similar incident happened at Yalavatti village in Lakshmeshwar taluk, Gadag district. The villagers there said that they would allow the funeral only if the government pays money for the graveyard. After the tahsildar Bhramaramba Gubbisetti, came to the village and promised to the villagers to complete the process of land acquisition for the graveyard at the earliest, the funeral was allowed to be performed in the presence of villagers, health officials and police personnel.