West Asia conflict: Pune crematoriums mull shift to wood-fired cremations amid LPG supply disruption

Sumit Giri, crematorium operator from Bopodi, said, “Right now, we still have some gas left with us. If the gas runs out, then we will have to use wood. Also, it is not that the crematorium is used daily. Sometimes one body comes, sometimes two bodies come. So for now, we can manage.”

“We still have around six to seven gas cylinders left. Once those cylinders are over, then we will most probably have to shut the gas crematorium. After that, we will not be able to continue gas-based cremation. If the gas runs out, then we will have to use the wood crematorium for the cremation process,” Babu Mane, operator at Salunke Vihar gas crematorium, said.

Pradeep Lonare from Bibwewadi crematorium informed that every day they receive two to three bodies for cremation. “There is no immediate issue with gas as of now,” he added.

Naval Kishor Ram, Commissioner, Pune Municipal Corporation, said, “So far in Pune, there has been no disruption in the supply of gas to crematoriums, as this is considered an important and essential service. We have 27 crematoriums in the city, and 18 of them use LPG gas. On average, about 180 bodies are cremated per day, which comes to roughly 2,000 per month. However, due to the current shortage of LPG, we are discouraging excessive use of gas crematoriums.

“We also have other facilities such as wood-based and electric crematoriums. In Pune city, some crematoriums have very high demand because of people’s traditional preferences. Therefore, we are asking people to use all available facilities rather than only certain ones, so that we can maintain a balance.”

(Vaishnavi Gujar is an intern with The Indian Express)