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Mystery shrouds missing bodies from mortuaries
As many as 533 bodies of orphans have gone missing under mysterious circumstances from the mortuaries of Osmania and Gandhi hospitals since January this year. The disappearance of the bodies of orphans from the government hospital mortuaries has given rise to a suspicion that a big racket is behind it.
Hyderabad: As many as 533 bodies of orphans have gone missing under mysterious circumstances from the mortuaries of Osmania and Gandhi hospitals since January this year. The disappearance of the bodies of orphans from the government hospital mortuaries has given rise to a suspicion that a big racket is behind it.
In a recent incident, the bodies of two beggars—Raju and Ashok—were shifted to the government hospital mortuary. Later, the two bodies vanished from the mortuary, said fellow beggars.
Highlights:
- 533 bodies of orphans missing
- No trace of 117 critically ill patients
- Does this point to flourishing human body racket?
In a metropolitan city like Hyderabad, it is not easy to trace relatives of abandoned bodies. The bodies of orphans, who died of severe illness at various places in the city, are also shifted to the government hospital mortuaries. As a result the bodies of orphans and abandoned are getting piled up in the mortuaries.
It is a known fact that the mortuary authorities are not following the due procedure in disposal of the unclaimed bodies. Generally, mass burial is performed for unclaimed bodies. As per the procedure, tags need to be tied to each body before the performance of mass burial.
The number of bodies buried en masse and the actual number do not tally. It is said to be the handiwork of the racket engaged in trade of human bodies, which is supplying the corpses to private medical colleges at a premium.
According to official sources, there are 43 private and eleven government medical colleges in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
Each medical college needs 12 to 16 bodies periodically for research and teaching. The number of people, who pledge their bodies to medical colleges, is very low in a country like India due to religious beliefs. Medical colleges are forced to buy bodies for their research and teaching activities clandestinely, which may be one of the reasons for the flourishing human body racket.
It is an open secret that some lower rung mortuary staff has colluded with the racketeers engaged in trading of unclaimed bodies. The stealing of Closed Circuit TV cameras installed in the mortuaries of Osmania and Gandhi hospitals has vouched for the clandestine dealings of the lower rung mortuary staff.
The CCTV cameras were installed at a cost of Rs 12 lakh in the hospital mortuaries following an outcry by the NGOs and social activists over disappearance of unclaimed bodies. It is evident that the mortuary staff takes all precautions to ensure that there is no proof of their clandestine dealings with the racketeers engaged in trading unclaimed bodies.
Another shocking fact is that 66 patients who got admitted to Osmania hospital with grave illness are reported missing. The number of critically ill patients, who went missing from Gandhi hospital, is 51. When a social activist sought details from the hospital authorities about the missing patients under the Right to Information Act, he got a written reply that they were absconding.
Some NGOs, who accused the hospital authorities of selling the bodies of patients to the racketeers following their death, moved court challenging the contention of `absconding’. If the critically ill patient is declared dead, a death certificate needs to be issued and the body should be handed over to his kin. In the guise of absconding, some corrupt officials are selling the bodies of the patients to the racketeers without any hindrance, the NGOs said.
Speaking to The Hans India, Rajeswara Rao of Satya Harishchandra Foundation said: “The racket engaged in trade of human bodies is thriving in the city. The bodies are also being supplied to private medical colleges in neighbouring States by the racketeers.
In an instance, the head of the body was supplied to an ENT institution for a sum of Rs 3 lakh after separating it from the torso as it does not need the whole body. Urgent steps need to be taken to curb the inhuman trade of unclaimed bodies by stepping up vigilance at the government hospital mortuaries. Otherwise, the disappearance of unclaimed bodies from the mortuaries remains a mystery forever.”
