Crematoria in disrepair add to kinas despair

The final rites of ghazal singer Jagjit Singh at Chandanwadi electric crematorium on Monday drew attention to the decrepit condition of Mumbai’s crematoria. While the funeral passed off peacefully, the crumbling exterior and partly functional furnaces threw up the harsh reality of these final resting places.

Most Hindu crematoria across the city are beset by an absence of basic facilities like running water, prayer rooms and condolence halls. At several places, drainage systems are faulty and urns for ashes and a?nirmalyaa or floral waste missing, further depleting the hygiene quotient.