Hyderabad is running out of room to house dead bodies. Shortage of sufficient space for graveyards has become a core issue for a city with a population of over 10 million.
Lack of space for graveyards and soaring costs for burial is creating a problem for Hyderabadis, and no religion is exempt from this issue.
Hyderabad has expanded vastly in recent decades and hundreds of new colonies have come into existence in recent years, which has increased the population in the GHMC limits suddenly. But the spaces for burial in GHMC limits have not increased accordingly. In fact while many graveyards in the city limits have shrunk due to encroachments, a few have even disappeared.
In GHMC limits, it is surmised that about 70,000 people pass away each year. The existing burial places are not sufficient.
Mr. Omar Mohammed of Adarsh Nagar said his great grandmother died on Wednesday at 3.00 pm but they could not bury her till 3.00 pm on Thursday. They found a place after a legwork of 24 hours. They were even refused by the custodian of a graveyard where the deceased had purchased a place for two graves on payment of `500 in 1977.
According to a family member, when they reached Khitta e Saleheen near Darussalam to acquire the permission to dig a grave, the watchman asked them to get permission from their ‘Sardar’, who lives in Fateh Darwaza, where they were informed that Habeeb was not available and were asked to come at 10.00 pm.
Later, they were advised to contact one person namely Sirajuddin, who after verifying the receipt of the payment for the graves said that the deceased woman was not entitled to be buried there.
The grieving family said that when they were refused, they tried to get a place in other graveyards.
A member of the management committee of a graveyard situated at Road No. 12 also refused saying their house did not come under the vicinity of their graveyard. Finally, they succeeded in getting permission to bury in a graveyard situated at Road No. 5, Banjara Hills after 24 hours of the death.
