More than 4,000 have contracted COVID-19 infection in India.
In what is being viewed as a major lapse by the Tamil Nadu government, over 50 people last week attended the funeral of a 71-year-old man, who had coronavirus, amid nationwide lockdown to control the spread of COVID-19. The contagious illness has infected over 4,000 people in India, killed more than 100.
The 71-year-old from Ramanathapuram district of Tamil Nadu - about 550 km from Chennai - was admitted at Chennai's Stanley Medical College Hospital after he traveled to Dubai; he died on April 2. The coronavirus test results that came after his death showed he had COVID-19.
His body was taken by road to his hometown, Keelakarai.
Despite the lockdown that restricts gathering at a funeral to 20 people, over 50, including an AIADMK lawmaker Manikandan, attended his funeral, a police officer told NDTV. Unconfirmed reports also say the body was also taken out of the protective bag for religious rituals.
MP Nawaz Khan has called for an action against the Stanley Medical College and Hospital over negligence as the attendees did not know that the man had coronavirus. In a statement, he said: "Had they announced the test results immediately, this wouldn't have happened. Or they ought to have waited till results came."
According to Union Health Ministry's guidelines, "there is unlikely to be an increased risk of COVID infection from a dead body to health workers or family members who follow standard precautions while handling body."
"Only the lungs of dead COVID patients, if handled during an autopsy, can be infectious," it says.
Reacting to the incident, Tamil Nadu Health Secretary Dr Beela Rajesh said: "The family was informed (about the possibility of COVID-19 infection). The body was placed in a protective cover. The public ought to co-operate. This is a national health disaster."
Local health officials say all attendees are being identified and put on home isolation.
The developments come at a time when the southern state is desperately trying to trace contacts of 1,246 returnees who attended a controversial religious gathering in Delhi last month which led to an unprecedented surge in number of COVID-19 cases in the country. Tamil Nadu has reported highest number of cases (522) linked to the gathering.
With COVID-19 cases in 32 districts, the state government has launched a massive containment drive.
In Chennai, which has reported 95 cases, 16, 000 workers are conducting a door-to-door screening over the next 90 days. In other districts across the state, 15,000 workers are on a similar drive. Declaring houses of the positive patients as epicentre, homes in a five km radius are being screened for those with symptoms so they could be tested or quarantined.
More than 38 lakh people have been screened and over 90,000 are under home quarantine. The state government says it has 22,049 isolation beds and 3,371 ventilators ready.