Mumbai Mortuaries Struggle with Pile-Up of 78 Unclaimed Bodies

Mumbai has a pile-up of over 78 unclaimed bodies lying in government hospital mortuaries. These bodies are adding pressure to mortuary facilities. Most of these are of elderly people, beggars, and unidentified accident victims.

Police stations that brought the bodies to the hospitals have been asked to speed up the identification process. Hospitals and senior police officers have told them to hand over identifiable bodies to family members. If identification is possible but no one claims the body, police have been asked to perform the last rites.

Photos of the deceased are shared on police WhatsApp groups as part of the standard procedure. Police check missing person reports for any match. If no identification is possible, the body remains in the mortuary.

As per the process, police look for tattoos, birthmarks, or other signs on the body and clothes. Sometimes names, religious symbols, or details about family members are tattooed on the body. These help in identifying the person or their religion. If identity is found, the body is disposed of. If not, it stays in the post-mortem room.

As per reports, every month, around 300 dead bodies are found in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. Around 60% are claimed by their relatives. The remaining 40% are unclaimed and are sent to public hospitals for storage and post-mortem.

If bodies are not claimed quickly, it becomes a problem. The mortuary air conditioning system comes under stress. Bodies start to rot. Rodents are attracted. Most mortuaries now have cold storage and tray systems. But when the number of bodies is too high, the problem continues.

Rules say that unclaimed bodies should be disposed of within 7 to 30 days. But some bodies remain for months. This is because of the heavy workload and the difficulty in finding the relatives.

If no one comes to claim a body, samples are taken and the DNA is stored at the Forensic Science Laboratory in Kalina. These DNA profiles are kept for a few months. After that, the investigating officer is called. Once all formalities are done, the body is disposed of following proper steps.

Some bodies are given to medical colleges for study purposes. Around 20% of bodies from train accidents go unclaimed. The same happens with newborns who are abandoned and people who had HIV. The final rites of these bodies are often carried out by volunteers.