No biometric attendance system in mortuaries: Government faces contempt

Failing to introduce biometric attendance system in state and civicrun hospitals has left the government at the risk of being pulled up for contempt A division bench of Bombay High Court Chief Justice Pradeep Nandrajog and Justice NM Jamdar hearing a PIL on June 20 ordered the introduction of the system to ensure only forensic experts conduct post mortem PM proceduresOn June 25 government pleader Purnima Kantharia forwarded the observations to additional chief secretary home and eight other bureaucrats in the health and police departments asking the heads of all mortuaries to comply and maintain entriesWith the order not being adhered to even two months later the petitioner is planning to move the HC for contempt The HCs order had to be adhered to in two weeks said Advocate Adil Khatri the petitioner Two months have lapsed and nothing has happened I am filing a contempt of court petition soonWhile forensic surgeons welcome the order they added that the ground realities at PM centres are different They said while a biometric system could confirm that a forensic surgeon entered a PM centre it will not be able to establish if they actually conducted the procedure A forensic expert on condition of anonymity said that in rural areas casualty medical officers ndash who may not be a forensic surgeon but could be an MBBS graduate or a postgraduate with expertise in one of 19 streams ndash perform the autopsyHe said India lags behind the West where forensic science and medicine form a crucial cog of the criminal justice system It is common here for autopsy findings to be ruled out or even negated to such an extent that it ends up benefiting the accused said the expert citing the July 2012 case of two young siblings who were found dead in their Versova homeInitially the cause of death was certified as being due to natural causes Following an investigation the bodies were exhumed and forensic tests revealed they had died of aluminium phosphide poisoning Anexpert panel under Dr SM Patil raised serious questions but the police failed to make a strong caseRajesh Dhere professor of forensic medicine at Sions LTMG Hospital said they are adhering to the HC order but added that there is shortage of manpower He said most MBBS graduates do not choose forensic medicine due to a dearth of opportunities lack of amenities in PM centres and the high risk of infectionsAfter the HC order we ensure all autopsies around 10 a day are conducted by qualified forensic experts said Dr Dhere We have asked college administrations to procure biometric systems for mortuaries But there arent enough forensic experts and it will be impossible to continue autopsiesAnother expert said forensic surgeons dont even get sterile gowns and are forced to work amid dried blood and decomposed flesh with no airconditioning We dont even have proper rest rooms he said Dr Dhere said Maharashtra where some districts use MBBS graduates to perform the autopsy and then get it approved by a forensic surgeon should follow Kerala where every district has its own forensic expertUnfortunately just a surgeon or forensic expert signs the PM findings while ideally it should be countersigned by a police or civil surgeon said Dr Dhere But this practice has been never followed due to which mistakes that happen while writing the report go unnoticed and the accused gets benefitCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates