DC' report wakes up GHMC officials

Hyderabad: The DC report on bodies being piled up at the Osmania Hospital Mortuary put GHMC health officials on their toes on Saturday. A team of officials rushed to the hospital in the morning to dispose of the unclaimed bodies.

GHMC officials however chose to pass the buck to the hospital authorities, saying that it was for the forensic department of Gandhi and Osmania hospitals to ensure packing the unclaimed bodies after duly tagging them.

The chief GHMC medical officer-health, Dr. B. Ganesh Babu, said in an official note, “The government has framed comprehensive policy guidelines for disposal of unclaimed /unidentified bodies via G.O No- 17, in line with HC orders. As per the guidelines, the forensic department of Gandhi Hospital and OGH shall ensure packing the unclaimed bodies, duly tagging them and handing them over to GHMC for disposal.

After receiving a letter from the forensic department and regional station house officer, the police along with the sub-registrar (birth and death), GHMC, will jointly dispose of the bodies via cremation or burial in the presence of police personnel. The police personnel will not be below the rank of SI.

Further, about the 36 bodies that were lying in the old autopsy theatre, on which DC carried the report on Saturday, the officials explained, “The jurisdiction of Osmania General Hospital is in Circle 5 (falling in South zone). Earlier, it had been allotted to Circle 8 (central zone). Following delimitation of GHMC wards, a few jurisdiction approvals are pending. However, the GHMC is initiating action as per the guidelines issued by the government in disposing of unclaimed bodies. Since March, 2017 till date, 120 bodies were disposed of. Passing the buck on to the hospital, the GHMC officials claimed that there was no delay in disposing of the unclaimed bodies from the GHMC end.