Tech-savvy rites for the dead at Ahmedabad!

Thanks to a tech-savvy crematorium here, that is equipped with internet linkage, modern furnace and air-conditioned halls in the 21st century, technology has touched one and all""even the dead!

Unlike a traditional crematorium, the eye-catching structure on Sarkej-Gandhinagar highway having a huge idol of Lord Shiva, as well as well-manicured gardens, is architecturally aesthetic.

"The crematorium was opened in August this year," said Kantibhai Rami the person in-charge of the place, sitting behind a 'reception counter,' with a trendy mobile in hand.

The place has been developed by the Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority (Auda) and a city-based NGO, he added.

The internet facility is appreciated by many, as relatives residing in distant parts of the world, particularly in foreign lands can view the last rites of their loved-ones by linking on to the official website of the crematorium.

"When a dead body arrives here, the relatives can use the 'prarthana hall' to offer the final prayers for the departed soul," Rami said.

Further on, he added that the hall is fully air-conditioned and equipped with a music system on which, the relatives can play 'bhajans' of their choice.

"There are cameras fitted in areas such as the prathana hall and the area near the electric furnace, which can help relay live pictures through the internet," said Amit Trivedi, system manager of Auda.

"Till date, about 70-odd bodies have been burnt and about four families have used this internet facility, including one from London and three others from United States," he added.

"Cameras have also been fitted near the two electric furnaces and after ritual, the dead body is kept in a trolley which automatically takes it into the burning chamber where it burns at 600 degree Celsius for an hour," said Rami.

The fresh air pump and the exhaust blower pump releases the fumes from the furnace into the chimney, while the water pump mixes water to the burnt remains of the body, he added. He says that while some of the ashes are given to the relatives, the rest after mixing with water is emptied into the Sabarmati.

"If the deceased was suffering from diseases such as cancer, then we do not let the relatives sit near the electric furnace and ask them to sit in the garden, behind the statue of Lord Shiva, where they can listen to devotional songs," he said.

Rami said that apart from the modern facilities, the crematorium also has a place where bodies can be burnt in the traditional manner, using wood. It is also equipped with a wash room, where relatives can wash themselves after the rites are over.