Crematoria and cemeteries in India have become overwhelmed with work following a devastating new wave of COVID-19 infections that is tearing through the densely populated country at a terrifying pace, leading to life-saving oxygen supplies being depleted to critical levels and leaving patients dying while waiting in line to see doctors. For the fourth consecutive day, India recorded a global record for new infections on Sunday, driven by a new virulent spike, undermining the government’s premature claims of victory over the pandemic, according to the Associated Press.
The confirmed cases reported totaled 349,691 in the past day, raising the total number of infections in India to over 16.9 million, coming second only to the United States. The Health Ministry reported another 2,767 deaths in the last 24 hours, bringing the COVID-19 death toll in India to 192,311. Experts say the actual death toll may be much higher than the reported number, as suspected cases are not included, and many deaths attributed to infections are ascribed to other causes.
The crisis unfolding in India is deeply rooted in cemeteries and crematoria, reflected in heartbreaking images of patients gasping and dying on their way to hospitals due to a lack of oxygen. Cemetery space is running out in the capital, New Delhi, and the glowing cremation pyres illuminate the night sky in other heavily impacted cities.
In downtown Bhopal, some crematoria have increased their capacity from dozens to over 50 bodies. Nonetheless, officials say there are still long waiting hours. At the Badhadha Vishram Ghat crematorium in the city, workers reported that they cremated over 110 bodies on Saturday, even as government figures for the entire city, with a population of 1.8 million, estimated the total number of deaths at around just 10.
Mamtish Sharma, a local official, stated, “The virus is devouring the residents of our city like a monster,” according to the Associated Press. The unprecedented rise in bodies has forced crematoria to skip the comprehensive rituals that Hindus believe liberate the soul from the cycle of rebirth. Sharma said, "We are burning the bodies as they arrive. It feels like we are in the middle of a war."
A grave digger at the largest Islamic cemetery in New Delhi, where 1,000 people have been buried during the pandemic, noted that more bodies are arriving now compared to last year. Mohammad Shameem stated, "I fear we will run out of space soon."
The situation is equally grim in intolerably full hospitals, where desperate individuals are dying in line, sometimes on the streets outside, awaiting care. Health officials are scrambling to expand critical care units and stock dwindling supplies of oxygen. Hospitals and patients alike are struggling to purchase rare medical equipment that is being sold at exorbitant prices.
The federal government, taken aback by the latest deadly surge, has asked industrialists to increase the production of oxygen and other life-saving drugs that are in short supply. But health experts say India had a full year to prepare for the inevitable—yet failed to do so.
