Sikh family performing last rites of victims contracts virus

Aditi Tandon
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, July 1

For months since the Covid-19 outbreak, this family of old Sikh settlers from Delhi had been engaged in the service of people hit by the virus from transporting Covid patients to hospitals to caring for unclaimed bodies of deceased.

Their chain of service was interrupted this week when Jitender Singh Shunty, founder of Shaheed Bhagat Singh Sewa Dal, tested positive for Covid along with son Jyot Jeet and wife Baljit Kaur.

“My son is 23 years of age and recently returned from London after a course in disaster management. I have no regrets that I have contracted the virus. It was something I was anticipating. My only regret is that I am unable to personally serve the people who may still need my help. I just want to say to everyone that we may be home quarantined but our organisation’s activities continue uninterrupted,” he says.

The father-son duo have established an online mechanism to monitor the “sewa” being offered by their institution’s staff, even as they recover in separate rooms at their Delhi residence.

Jyot Jeet said, “I am not concerned about myself, but I am worried about my mother. She was the one who prayed daily and sent me to serve the people. Thankfully, my elder brother is healthy.” Singh and Jyot Jeet through their fleet of ambulances have been helping families with last rites of deceased and performing the religious rituals themselves in cases of unclaimed positive bodies.