When the deadly pandemic was at a rise with its second wave back in 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated “After 100 years, such a terrible pandemic is testing the world at every step.”. Indeed Covid-19 came like a wave and absolutely shook everyone to the core, it posed various new challenges across the world unlike anything people had seen before. Before diving into the implications and effects of the virus it is vital to understand its origin and how it spreads. According to WHO, “Covid 19 is an infectious disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the virus can spread from an infected person’s mouth or nose in small liquid particles when they cough, sneeze, speak, sing or breathe.”. Damages of the Covid-19 pandemic were felt throughout, in various sectors of the society, everyone was gravely affected by it, especially in India there was also a shortage of supplies like oxygen cylinders and hospital beds. Many people would also not follow the guidelines released by WHO and the government regarding the pandemic, which was absolutely pertinent to suppress it and save lives. According to the data collected by WHO, India saw more than 500,000 deaths due to Covid-19, and with this our country was faced with a new challenge: the disposal of dead bodies in a dignified and humane manner.

In a study published in the International Journal of Legal Medicine, it was concluded that “Corpses of deceased COVID-19 patients have to be considered potentially infective for more than 2 weeks post mortem under typical cooling conditions. The infectivity is mainly dependent on the time interval between initial disease symptoms and the occurrence of death as well as the viral load and may be present even after the onset of decay.”, meaning that even the deceased were potential sources of infection to those that came in contact with the body. This made proper handling of dead corpses even more crucial in order to prevent the spread of the virus. Hence, the right disposal of bodies became extremely necessary while also ensuring a decent burial or cremation, which back then did not seem feasible in multiple cases

With the death toll surpassing thousands in India, the pandemic revealed a distressing reality, where even in death, individuals were denied dignity. It became extremely difficult to manage dead bodies while adhering to Covid safety protocols, transportation of dead bodies, along with their burial or cremation was a mammoth of a task considering that moratoriums, cremation halls, were already filled with people, and also because there was widespread fear surrounding the disease and its spread. Failure to dispose of bodies properly in turn also resulted in sorrow in many families. In order to address these issues NHRC, the National Human Rights Commission released an advisory for “upholding the dignity and protecting the rights of the dead”, in which it laid out certain recommendations that needed to be implemented by each state in India. In its advisory NHRC, reflected upon an extremely important and landmark judgement, namely the case of Parmanand Katara v. Union of India (1989). In this case it was recognized that the right to life, fair treatment and dignity, extended not only to a living person but also to his dead body, These rights are derived from Article 21 of the Constitution of India and guarantees the right to life and liberty, it enables humans to live a life of dignity, and has been extended to dead people too.

Even in international policies and frameworks, human dignity is of utmost importance, the UN Commission on Human Rights in a Resolution adopted in 2005, underlined the importance of dignified handling of human remains, including their proper management and disposal as well as of respect for the needs of families. In light of the situation and keeping in mind the various cases in the past, nationally and internationally, various Indian states also released state specific guidelines, and recommendations. The NHRC recommended setting up temporary crematoriums in order to manage the mass deaths and avoid any delay in cremating the bodies with dignity. Further, it also recommended sensitizing the staff working at crematoriums, burial grounds, etc. regarding proper disposal of the bodies while also abiding by the Covid safety protocols, and in order to ensure that, they should be provided with proper safety equipment and facilities and also had to be vaccinated for Covid-19. Family members of the deceased were only allowed to perform certain rituals which did not require direct contact with the dead body. During the pandemic there was also a rise in electronic cremation, which was encouraged to avoid health hazards caused due to burning funeral pyres in large numbers, along with that mass burial and piling of dead bodies was also strictly not allowed.

It is necessary to understand that during the pandemic judicial intervention also played an extremely crucial role in reaffirming the fundamental principles established by Article 21. In an article dated back to 2020, the Madras High Court held that the right to decent burial does fall under the scope of Article 21. Another case titled ‘Vineet Ruia Vs The Principal Secretary the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Govt. of West Bengal & Ors’, the Calcutta High Court ruled that the right to perform the last rites of a Covid-19 victim is protected under Article 21, the court further added that it is also important to respect tradition and culture which is a fundamental right under Article 25. 

The anomalies in disposing of the deceased reflected a flaw in the country’s preparedness, and response to emergencies and crisis situations. The pandemic did in fact test the world at every step, it created a new fear in people, and initially also eroded the citizens trust in the government. Though guidelines and recommendations made by the government, NHRC, WHO, etc did play a crucial role in managing the situation, and improving India’s preparedness towards such situations. Resources created by the government like “Aarogya Setu” also aimed at protecting citizens during Covid- 19, it would help keep track of the rising cases and Covid-19 deaths, maintain vaccine records, provide assistance in case of emergencies and much more.

Despite facing epidemics, and crisis situations in the past, multiple countries across the world still face issues surrounding lack of resources, strategy, management and emergency services, which is exactly what led to delays in proper cremation and burial of those who died due to Covid-19 especially in India. The pandemic did bring a shift in how people are cremated and buried in such crisis situations, State and NHRC guidelines/ recommendations also helped in ensuring that the deceased received the right to decent burial, hence, maintaining the basic fundamentals mentioned in our Constitution under Article 21. The challenges faced during the pandemic helped highlight the importance of the rights of the deceased and the need for creating awareness around their rights, which also includes the right to decent burial, especially in crisis situations like Covid-19. In the end it is not only a legal obligation that needs to be fulfilled but also a moral and ethical one, ensuring that the deceased are disposed of with the dignity and respect that they deserve.

1. Singhvi, A. (n.d.-b). Dignity of Life and the Rights of Deceased Persons in India amid COVID-19 | OHRH. https:ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/dignity-of-life-and-the-rights-of-deceased-persons-in-india-amid-covid-19/

2. Varun, P. K. (2021, May 28). Fundamental Right to Decent Burial and Right to Reputation of Deceased: A Legal Study during Covid. IJLLR Journal. https:www.ijllr.com/post/fundamental-right-to-decent-burial-and-right-to-reputation-of-deceased-a-legal-study-during-covid

3. Pti. (2021, May 14). Government working in war-footing mode to fight second wave of COVID-19: PM Modi. The Economic Times. https:economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/india/government-working-in-war-footing-mode-to-fight-second-wave-of-covid-19-pm-modi/articleshow/82627968.cms?from=mdr

4. Thakre, S., & Waghmode, A. (2022, July 6). The Handling of Dead Bodies of the Confirmed COVID-19 Patients during Pandemic. https:www.jrmds.in/articles/the-handling-of-dead-bodies-of-the-confirmed-covid19-patients-during-pandemic-93751.html

5. Plenzig, S., Bojkova, D., Held, H., Berger, A., Holz, F., Cinatl, J., Gradhand, E., Kettner, M., Pfeiffer, A., Verhoff, M. A., & Ciesek, S. (2021). Infectivity of deceased COVID-19 patients. International Journal of Legal Medicine, 135(5), 2055–2060. https:doi.org/10.1007/s00414-021-02546-7

6. National Human Rights Commission, India. (n.d.). Advisory for upholding the dignity and protecting the rights of the dead. https:nhrc.nic.in/sites/default/files/NHRC%20Advisory%20for%20Upholding%20Dignity%20%26%20Protecting%20the%20Rights%20of%20Dead.pdf

7. Dasgupta, S. (2021). A Critical analysis of right to disposal of dead bodies: Special reference to COVID-19 pandemic. International Journal of Peace Education and Development, 9(1). https:doi.org/10.30954/2454-9525.01.2021.2

8. World Health Organization: WHO. (2020, January 10). Coronavirus. https:www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus#tab=tab_1

9. Indulia, B. (2020, April 24). Coronavirus | Madras HC| “Art. 21 includes right to have decent burial”; Court takes suo motu cognizance of obstruction caused in burial of COVID-19 infected doctor | SCC Times. SCC Times. https://www.scconline.com/blog/post/2020/04/21/coronavirus-madras-hc-art-21-includes-right-to-have-decent-burial-court-takes-suo-motu-cognizance-of-obstruction-caused-in-burial-of-covid-19-infected-doctor/