THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A whopping 1.6 lakh samples pertaining to 62,558 cases are lying pending in the Chemical Examiner’s Laboratories in the state raising concerns about effective deliverance of justice in cases under trial and proper probe in cases under investigation.
The high pendency rate came to light during the working group study conducted by the Personnel and Administrative Reforms Department.
Operating under the Home Department, the Chemical Examiner’s Labs in Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam and Kozhikode are responsible for conducting examination of material objects sent to it by courts and investigating agencies and the reports they file are considered as valid evidence.
The study report said the toxicology wing has the highest pendency rate (36,000 cases), followed by narcotics (12,683), excise (10,679), serology (533) and general chemistry, (279).
The toxicology wing deals with human and animal poisoning and detection of alcohol in blood samples.
The report said one of the reasons behind the surge in pendency rate is the reluctance to implement the Chief Chemical Examiner’s standing order that the assistant chemical examiners should handle examination of 20 per cent of narcotics cases, in addition to their other duties.
The order was issued on the basis of an understanding that most of the assistant examiners were just restricting themselves to under-signing the documents prepared by the analysts or scientific officers. Another government order directing that the scientific officers, who completed probation, should be considered as deemed assistant chemical examiners, was also not implemented, the report said.
Had these orders been implemented, the scientific officers, who completed probation, could have fulfilled the responsibilities of reporting officers. This in turn could have given assistant chemical officers time to handle cases on their own.
The report also pointed out that inefficient use of manpower and equipment, lethargy on the part of a section of staff, lack of awareness in handling advanced machines, and tendency to stick to outdated test methods were affecting the proper functioning of the labs.
As per the chief chemical examiner’s order in 2018, an assistant chemical examiner should monitor the working of four analysts/scientific officers. In case there are less than four analysts to manage, the assistant chemical examiner should chip in and fill the void of the fourth person by doing the tests.
Also, all assistant chemical examiners are required to analyse 20 per cent of narcotic cases. In Thiruvananthapuram lab, the study report, said one of the four assistant chemical examiners was found to have handled cases on his own. In the other two labs also, the situation was more or less the same.
Meanwhile, an official attached with the lab said there were technical issues in implementing the standing orders, but added that manpower crunch was the main reason behind the pendency issue.
“As per the CrPC, the central government alone can designate scientific officers as scientific experts. Based on this, the service organisations opposed the move to implement the Chief Chemical Examiner’s order. But, with the introduction of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, the deadlock has been removed as the new act has authorised the state government to designate scientific experts on its own,” the official said.