Parsis in Mumbai and Gujarat have hailed the Supreme Court’s approval of a revised protocol for disposing of bodies of Parsi Covid-19 victims that re-allows for last rites as per the Zoroastrian culture. Friday’s decision comes after the Centre and Surat Parsi Punchayet (SPP) reached an agreement on ways and means to dispose of the body, laying down fresh protocols and SOPs. A metallic bird net/grill will be installed inside the Tower of Silence or dakhmas  (a circular, raised structure built by Zoroastrians for excarnation) to avoid any contact with birds and animals, who could potentially carry Covid-19 strains; their bodies will now be disposed of only by sun rays.

Noshir Dadrawala, one of the trustees of the Bombay Parsi Punchayet (BPP), said, “It is good that some kind of compromise has been reached. There will be a grill and netting so that the birds do not have access to the dead. Out of the many towers, one will be demarcated for only those who have succumbed to Covid-19. Despite the apex court’s order, we do not yet know if the Mumbai or Pune Municipal Corporation will allow for it. But it should be binding in other jurisdictions, too. We too would like to approach the BMC and draw their attention to the SC order and tell them that we as a minority have a right to these rituals.”