TRADE
Death in itself is an event that devastates those who lose their loved ones. In such a situation, falling prey to the illegalities that prevail at the graveyards, adds to peoples misery. It has become difficult to buy a grave for many as the prices charged exceed the official rate.
The various civic bodies that run the city are also the managers of graveyards. Those falling under the mayor Karachi (Karachi Metropolitan Corporation) are one hundred and ninety two. The graveyard management over the years has failed exactly how other departments have in maintaining rule of law.
Out of the 192 graveyards falling under the jurisdiction of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC), twenty eight had been officially closed for further burials in 2007. Those that have been closed are still carrying out the last rituals; how?
A closer investigation reveals that graveyards are no exception to the rotten system plagued by corruption in our country. “Grave grabbing,” is as lucrative a business as land grabbing.
Each graveyard managed under the KMC, has a gatekeeper (chaukidar), a grave digger (gorkan), and a gardener. These are not employees of the administration, but are those who have been officially permitted to work at the graveyards. They are issued a card by KMC. Under the bylaws, no other person is allowed to operate in the graveyards, unless given official endorsement. Some of the graveyards might have an official strength of five to ten, depending upon the large area the grave yard is spread over.
Each time a burial takes place, there a receipt issued by the grave digger which is then sent to NADRA for information. The rate fixed for a grave, which is uniform in Karachi and is not locality specific, by the administration is Rs2,500. A receipt is issued at each burial, a copy of which is collected by the administration. The administration gets a tax of Rs300 for an adult and Rs200 for a child from the grave digger. The actual price charged for the grave is not accounted on the receipt and goes directly into the pocket of the grave digger.
This price ranges from Rs10,000 to Rs25,000 depending upon the locality of the graveyard and also the place of the grave within the graveyard. Those that are nearer to an entrance of the graveyard or have easy access to are charged less.
The administration seems helpless in controlling the price charged and also the burials that are still taking place at those graveyards that have been officially closed due to over population.
It is because the corrupt officers have an amount fixed which the grave diggers pay under the table on a monthly basis. One can imagine the amount by simply looking at the figures. A minimum of 15 graves are dug in the graveyard located on Tariq Road, Karachi. If a minimum of Rs10,000 is charged for a grave, the monthly income for the gorkan is approximately between Rs400,000 to Rs500,000.
The grave diggers on the other hand say the price fixed by the government is too less. One of the gorkans on account of anonymity says that 100 blocks are required costing Rs2,200, cement bag Rs550, and a dumper full of sand costs Rs1,500; all this is not possible in just Rs2500 as fixed by the government.
There are many unregistered graveyards that exist admits the administration. They are usually in goths (villages) and are approximately 52 in number. The receipt issued after the burial is the key document based on which the administration issues a Death Certificate. Hence, for unregistered graveyards, fake receipts are issued by the registered graveyards just like the “fake degree,” involving undocumented money.
Among all these anomalies exist the grabbing of land by citizens; hoping to have all their family in one place. These allotments unfortunately are not done by administration. In fact, it is these gravediggers who book the land for graves in advance and charge the customer.
Gorkans or grave diggers have become the authority in this business; although the authority should be that of the administration, as gorkans are the operators where as the land is under the government.
The big question is about the graveyards that have been officially closed. Since burials are still taking place in them example (Sakhi Hassan, Paposh, PECHS, Korangi 6, etc), how are the receipts being issued? If these are all fake receipts, then is the NADRA system being updated? If the answer is “yes,” it seems the system is totally being operated on illegalities which the administration has turned a blind eye towards.
Electricity and water charges at the graveyard are paid by the administration. However, there are certain graves that have special construction and lights arranged; these are charged by the utility company and paid by the relatives who have made the fancy arrangements.
Of many issues that face the mega city Karachi is the graveyard management issue. Though, it seems a micro issue, one must not forget that death is an occasion where no one shall complain, nor protest. It is because of the affordability, that many find it difficult to observe the last rituals on their own.
The writer is a broadcast journalist
