Revenue board told to ensure land for graveyards in all new projects

The Sindh High Court (SHC) has directed the senior member of the Board of Revenue (BoR) to ensure that in all new schemes a proper piece of land is earmarked for the purpose of graveyards in the master plan. The direction came on a petition against encroachments in graveyards and the non-availability of ambulances at government hospitals.

Petitioner Rana Faizul Hasan, who died while the petition was pending, had submitted that more than 1,000 people died during a severe heatwave in June 2015, but the city’s medical facilities did not have enough ambulances to shift patients, while most of the graveyards in the metropolis were not allotted enough land to deal with such an extreme situation, since they ran out of space.

He informed the court that at least 100 unclaimed bodies were buried in a two-foot-deep communal grave due to a lack of space in the city’s graveyards. He submitted that communal burials are only allowed during times of war, but we are not facing any war-like situation, and communal burial amounts to desecrating the bodies.

He said that only a few graveyards in the city have space to bury bodies, while the rest are full, and the undertakers are charging between Rs10,000 and Rs50,000 for burials.

The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation’s director graveyard and municipal services submitted that a piece of 9.75 acres has been earmarked in Surjani Town Sector 16-A, and the tender has already been sanctioned for the construction of a model graveyard. He said that 425 acres has been allocated for the graveyard at the Super Highway link road M-5.

He said the boundary wall will be constructed at the Surjani Town graveyard within three months, while a tender will be published for 22 acres of the 425 acres earmarked for the graveyard situated at the Super Highway, which will be completed within six months after the awarding of the contract.

Regarding the shortage of staff at the graveyard department, Karachi Metropolitan Commissioner Dr Syed Saifur Rehman said services of 37 employees have been placed at the disposal of the additional director graveyard and municipal services, adding that after such a transfer the department will be completely functional and they will perform their assigned duties properly.

He said that some directions are required to be issued to the BoR for making necessary provisions and arrangements for graveyards in all new schemes on state land, as admittedly no ample space is available for graveyards in the East, South and Central districts, while old graveyards have already been filled up and declared closed.

The SHC’s division bench headed by Justice Mohammad Ali Mazhar observed that the suggestion of the commissioner is quite appropriate and directed the BoR senior member to ensure that in all new schemes a proper piece of land is earmarked for the purpose of graveyards in the master plan.