Mancherial: Man builds crematorium to fulfil father’s dream

Ranga Rao, a Road Transport Officer, builds the facility on two acres spending Rs 60 lakh

Mancherial: In order to realize the long-cherished dream of his father and to give back to society, a government official has built a crematorium on two acres of land, sanctioned by the government, for the convenience of the local people in Luxettipet, spending nearly Rs 60 lakh.

P Ranga Rao, who works as a Road Transport Officer in Peddapalli district, hails from Luxettipet town. Ranga Rao not only fulfilled a long-pending dream of his father Sathayarayana, but also brought respite to the denizens of the town by constructing the crematorium on the banks of the Godavari river. “My father Sathyanarayana, a prominent lawyer of the town, always dreamed of building a crematorium for the convenience of locals. He had initiated the process for the creation of the facility by requesting the government to grant the land in 2012 but passed away in 2015. However, I fulfilled his dream by completing the structure in December of 2020,” Ranga Rao told ‘Telangana Today.’

Rao said he built the crematorium with help of his savings and donations generously contributed by his family members and relatives for the noble cause. He initially handed over the facility to Luxettipet municipality but decided to operate it by establishing a trust in memory of his father to ensure better quality services.

The crematorium has three air-blower-based platforms to burn the bodies in quickly and to save money.

Bathrooms, showers, special rooms to store ashes, about 100 shade, fruit-bearing trees, and additional rooms to provide temporary shelter to the homeless when their family members die are all among the facilities provided. Rao’s initiative has come in handy for residents by reducing the financial burden of performing final rites. Users need not pay any charges to utilize the facility. They, however, should buy wood to cremate the body from a local vendor. According to the trust, around 100 bodies were cremated at the facility so far.