Individuals may apply for Zubeen Garg’s ashes, subject to availability: Assam govt

Guwahati, Sept 24: The ashes from the funeral pyre of cultural icon Zubeen Garg will be made available to organisations and individuals through an online application process, the state government announced on Tuesday.

Education Minister Ranoj Pegu said the portal, to be launched shortly, will be administered by the Cultural Affairs Department.

“The Assam government will open a simple portal through which organisations and institutions can apply to obtain the ashes of their beloved artiste. The Cultural Department will oversee the process,” he said.

Pegu added that individuals may also apply, subject to availability. “If remains are available after providing them to organisations, the department will consider individual applications as well,” he said.

He further said that, as announced earlier by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, a portion of the ashes will be taken to Jorhat, where there had been a demand to cremate Garg. The singer spent his formative years in the eastern town.

“The rituals connected with the 13th day of demise will be performed at Jorhat. A memorial will also be built there, with the site to be finalised soon,” the minister said.

Meanwhile, work on the boundary wall of Garg’s samadhikhetra at Kamarkuchi began on Tuesday night. On Wednesday, a day after the funeral, local women led a community cleaning drive at the cremation site.

“The spot where the pyre was built and lit will be secured from tonight itself. Temporary barricades were already in place, and work on a permanent boundary wall will start tonight,” Pegu told the press, on Tuesday.

He added that a state police camp will also be set up at Kamarkuchi for security, while the site will remain open for the public to pay their respects.

Garg was cremated at Kamarkuchi on Tuesday with full state honours, as lakhs of mourners paid their final tributes to the singer-composer.

PTI