ABSTRACT
Funeral is an important part of our society, carried out in the presence of loads of wood as a source of energy. At some corner, we are missing the fact that this is affecting the environment and becoming a significant contributor to air pollution and water pollution. Complete or incomplete burning of dead bodies releases smoke containing harmful pollutants, including particulate matter in the atmosphere, and the ash left behind after burning process results in its discharge with toxic heavy metals in the water streams, affecting aquatic life therein. Apart from polluting the environment, it also creates a huge pressure on the forests for wood availability for this purpose. Severity of its impact has increased due to COVID-19. Despite being blessed with extreme natural beauty, serenity, and resources, plain zones of Himalayan region in India have also not been left unaffected by this cause of environmental sickness. Certain eco-friendly strategies are feasible to be adopted, replacing/minimizing the requirement of wood for cremation. This may be proposed as a holistic approach for offering last rites to departing souls, thereby saving our nature by preserving forests, and by preventing air and water from being polluted through this source of contamination.
