The construction of 27 crematoriums has begun in 27 Nam Tong Buddhist sect pagodas in eight localities in the southern province of Tra Vinh, costing 22.55 billion VND (1.05 million USD) of the central environmental budget.

Each crematory will be 19 metres high and include three rectangular blocs, the body, chimney foot and chimney. The inner partition is built with heat resistant chamotte bricks while the exterior is comprised of 200-millimetre thick hollow bricks.

In addition, a lightning protection system has been designed to protect the building within a 57-metre radius.

The construction is scheduled to be completed by the end of this year.

In 2012, the provincial Ethnic Department built 97 crematoria worth over 52 billion VND (2.4 million USD).

Kim Hong Danh, Deputy Head of the provincial Ethnic Department highlighted that the incinerator construction includes a soot mitigation system to minimise environmental pollution and ensure that the health of local residents is not affected, adding that many of the earlier crematoria did not meet the technical, hygienic, and environmental standards.

Tra Vinh is currently home to over 320,000 Khmer ethnic people, accounting for 32 percent of the province’s residents. The majority are Buddhist followers and are traditionally cremated after death.-VNA