From graveyard walls to cremation grounds: SP dodges BJP’s blame

“Instructions have been issued to select the cremation grounds with clear titles (meaning the land or property should not be disputed) and those that cover large population,” Chanchal Tiwari, principal secretary to Panchayati Raj department, told The Indian Express. Tiwari confirmed that a special fund of Rs 100 crore has been sanctioned.

It should be noted that when the SP government cleared Rs 300 crore to minority welfare department (headed by cabinet minister Azam Khan) for the construction of boundary walls of Muslim graveyards, keeping a promise that figured in the SP’s 2012 election manifesto, BJP had raised the issue during the Lok Sabha elections this year, calling it an “appeasement policy”. The SP had rallied the move as a measure to safeguard the graveyards from illegal encroachment.

The 70,000 cremation grounds, spread across UP’s one lakh villages, will cost around Rs 14.50 lakh each. Each will be raised on a platform 12 metre long and  five metre wide and covered by a shade, with a ‘shanti sthal’ for visitors and a separate space for stocking woods. The place will also have a toilet and a bathroom for those attending the funeral.

The supervision of construction work will be undertaken by the engineering and technical staff of zila panchayat, while the responsibility of overseeing the development work will rest with the Chief Development Officer, Apar Mukhya Adhikari of zila panchayat and the District Panchayati Raj Officer.

The entire premise will be covered by interlocking tiles with a hand pump and drainage facilities, too, being part of the plan. For selecting the cremation ground, preference will be given to those where more bodies are brought for cremation.