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Summary:

The Kilpauk Cemetery in Chennai, India, is nearing completion of a project to number all of its graves. This initiative, started in 2024, aims to help visitors easily locate specific gravesites within the large and often crowded cemetery. The numbering is part of a broader effort to digitize cemetery records, a process that began in 2005-2006. The cemetery, which holds graves dating back to 1903 and uses multi-tier vault systems, is divided into 34 zones, with each section containing 600 graves. The Madras Cemeteries Board Trust, which manages the cemetery, plans to extend the numbering project to the Kasimedu Cemetery in the coming month.

News Article:

Kilpauk Cemetery Nears Completion of Grave Numbering Project to Ease Family Visits

Chennai, India – November 1, 2025 – The Kilpauk Cemetery, one of Chennai’s oldest and largest burial grounds, is in the final stages of numbering its gravesites. This project, launched last year by the Madras Cemeteries Board Trust, aims to alleviate the challenges faced by families attempting to locate specific graves within the 15-acre cemetery.

“With the cemetery often crowded, finding a particular family plot can be difficult,” explained S. Bosco Alangar Raj, treasurer of the Madras Cemeteries Board Trust. “This numbering system will greatly assist visitors in locating the graves of their loved ones.”

The cemetery has been divided into 34 zones, each containing approximately 600 graves. The initiative goes hand-in-hand with the long-term effort of digitizing the cemetery’s records, a process that began in 2005. This digitization ensures proper record maintenance and easy access in the future.

“The major challenge has been cross-checking the details mentioned in the existing records before assigning a number to each grave,” said Bosco Alangar Raj.

The Kilpauk Cemetery, with graves dating back to 1903, serves various Christian denominations and has been an early adopter of multi-tier vault systems and ash burials. The Trust plans to extend the numbering project to the Kasimedu Cemetery within the next month. The Trust believes these actions are for the benifit of the community.

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