The Name Is Khan

Meet the Kashmiri businessman who took it upon himself to give a proper burial to Covid-19 victims

- Tariq Bhat

In 2013, Sajad Khan bought a machine to make bags for retailers and distributors. Khan, who also ran a travel agency, wanted to supplement his income. However, the machine remained in storage, owing to lack of space to set it up. A year later, when Kashmir was hit by the worst floods in its history, Khan cancelled the plan to make bags and started Houseful, a retail store at Qamarwari in Srinagar.

The business clicked. Khan got married and focused on growing his business. But, when Covid-19 hit Kashmir, he decided that he needed to do something to help and started making PPE kits with the old machine. He distributed them for free, primarily to doctors and health workers. One day, when he went to give the kits to the relatives of a woman who had died of Covid-19, he found that they were reluctant to bury her.