Express News Service
PATNA: Forty-nine-year-old Mukesh Hissariya, who has been credited for arranging more than 240 cremations of covid-19 victims in Patna, is one of the 100 people chosen to feature in Dettol products as a ‘protector’.
Hissariya’s photo has been used on Dettol pouches and bottles as a ‘CoVID-19 Protector’ with a description of a person who risked his life to perform funerals for those who succumbed to the virus.
“Mukesh Hissariya is awarded Dettol Salutes as ‘Our protector’ for his extraordinary efforts to help the people of India during extremely testing times of the pandemic,” a certificate provided to him by Dettol read.
Also known as ‘the blood man of Bihar’ for arranging many blood donation camps in the state, Hissariya facilitated cremations for 96 victims in 2020 and 145 of them this year and helped their bereaved kin at various cremation ghats in the city.
He is associated with the Maa Vaishno Devi Seva Samiti in Patna and conducted a series of charitable services for the poor people, children suffering from thalassemia, and also organising group weddings for people who cannot afford it.
“Among the 145, 52 were those whose family members requested him through video calls to arrange cremations at ghats. My volunteers acted and ensured the proper cremations amid Vedic mantras recited by hired pundits, We had also hired barbers, four labourers for taking the bodies of Covid patients to the ghats, and one shopkeeper for providing items required for cremation rituals,” Hissariya said.
He, with monetary support from donors in Patna also built the first non-commercial blood bank in the state at the cost of Rs 6 crore, which will provide free blood to HIV and Thalassamina patients from October 1 this year.
He added that weddings of 488 girls from poor families have been arranged in the last 10 years under the banner of Maa Vaishno Devi Seva Samiti.
On Monday, he will be attending the weekly Junta Darwar of Bihar CM Nitish Kumar to suggest ways for treatment of Thalassemia patients and children in the state.