Both cremation and burial permissible for COVID-19 dead: experts, medical bodies 

• Health Ministry yet to decide 
• More opinions tilted in favour of allowing both cremation and burials
• Expert committee, SLMA, CCPSL, all say burial can be permitted under strict guidelines
• Former DGHS says relevant Gazette issued in April can be revised by Health Ministry

While the Sri Lanka Medical Association (SLMA), College of Community Physicians of Sri Lanka (CCPSL), and an expert committee all are of the opinion that both cremation and burials are acceptable as means of disposal of bodies of COVID-19 victims, the Health Ministry is yet to decide on the matter.

There are calls for the Government to reach a quick decision on the contentious issue.

The latest to endorse both burial and cremation is the expert committee, chaired by Senior Professor in Microbiology Prof. Jennifer Perera. This committee of virologists, microbiologists and immunologists said in its report submitted last Friday to the Health Ministry that both cremation and burial are permissible under strict guidelines.

However, another committee chaired by Consultant Judicial Medical Officer and Forensic Pathologist Dr. Channa Perera, which submitted its report two weeks ago, is of the view that cremation is the only safe mode of disposal of bodies of COVID-19 victims.

The Health Ministry, however, is yet to decide on which report’s recommendation it will abide by.

Meanwhile former Director-General of Health Services (DGHS) Dr. Anil Jasinghe, in an interview with a Sinhala-language Sunday paper, has also said the Health Ministry can revise the Gazette.

“The Gazette notification was issued last April, making cremation mandatory given the uncertainty over the COVID-19 situation in the country. Ten months later, taking scientific research into the issue in consideration, this Gazette can be revised. The Health Ministry should do that,” Dr. Jasinghe has said.

The SLMA also said in a statement on Saturday that based on observations it has made and relying on currently available scientific information, the burial of COVID-19 bodies could be permitted in Sri Lanka.

SLMA noted that based on the limited scientific evidence available at the initial stages, a decision was made by the Director-General of Health Services of the Ministry of Health to cremate all dead bodies of COVID-19 positive patients.

However, SLMA noted that since then there has been significant unrest among some communities regarding the Government’s decision to impose compulsory cremation as the only avenue of disposal of COVID-19 dead bodies.

“This has the potential to cause much civil unrest. As a result, it was also found that people were generally reluctant to cooperate with the COVID control measures implemented by the Government. Many of them avoided seeing doctors, and hence there were several deaths occurring at home without them seeking medical attention or treatment,” SLMA said.

The College of Community Physicians of Sri Lanka (CCPSL) also said last week that there is no solid evidence indicating that burial of dead bodies of COVID-19 victims would increase the spread of the virus.

“With the available scientific evidence and the impact of the decision on cremation on pandemic control activities at large, CCPSL concludes that adhering to global guidelines, each citizen of Sri Lanka should be allowed to be cremated or buried as per his/her and the family’s desire within the strict guidelines recommended by the Ministry of Health,” CCPSL said in a Position Paper on the debate about compulsory cremation of victims of COVID.