Dalits, Muslims do not have enough burial grounds in Karnataka

Karnataka is facing an acute shortage of burial grounds, especially for the dalits, backward classes and Muslims, apart from Lingayats.

Unlike in other parts of India, a large number of Hindus bury the dead in Karnataka and this has led to a shortage of burial grounds.

The New Indian Express had reported on March 20, last year that in the absence of enough burial grounds, the oppressed castes among the Hindus are forced to bury the dead by the roadside, in many parts of the state.

The Hindustan Times reported yesterday that due to the unavailability of burial ground in Bankur village, a man donated his mother’s body to the district medical college.

According to the report 7,064 villages in Karnataka do not have burial grounds.

For years, people of the state have been demanding adequate burial grounds, but the government has failed to meet the demand.

Hearing a public interest litigation (PIL), the government had told the Karnataka High Court on December 5, 2018 that 6,053 villages in the state would be provided burial grounds and that the government has worked out a proposal to purchase land from private people by paying three times the land value to provide burial grounds.

The government stated before a division bench of Chief Justice Dinesh Maheshwari and Justice S Sujatha hearing the PIL filed by Mohammed Iqbal seeking directions to the state government to provide burial grounds in all villages and towns, that it has allocated Rs10 crore in the budget 2018-19 to acquire land for burial grounds.

According to the statement, Rs 10 crore was to be used for providing burial grounds in every village, where there is no government land. Total 7,176 villages need burial grounds as on 2016. Burial grounds are to be provided to 6,053 villages as on October 31, 2018, the court was told.

Even after three years, people are still waiting for burial grounds.