COIMBATORE: Doctors and activists are divided in their opinion on the Union Health Ministry's decision to allow post mortem examination after sunset. While activists say family members of the deceased need not wait long to receive bodies, forensic experts voiced apprehension that identifying colour would be difficult under artificial light and could impact the report.
A Edwin Joe, a retired government forensic surgeon and former director of medical education, said, "There would be a difference in the findings of post mortem done at night due to lack of natural light. We admit that conducting of post mortem at night would help organ transplant cases. But what is the need to conduct post mortem on other cases at night? When crematoria have working hours, why not mortuaries? To reduce queue at the mortuary, we can drop autopsy on non-medico legal cases where the cause of death is known."
A member of Tamil Nadu Medico-Legal Society (TNMLS) welcomed the decision but added a note of caution. "Government hospitals in Chennai perform 30 post mortem examinations in a day on average while hospitals in cities like Coimbatore may handle 10 cases. Advances in lighting and infrastructure have made it possible to perform post mortem at night. The Centre has made it clear that homicide, suicide, rape, decomposed bodies and suspected foul play cases should not be handled at night. Accident cases, deaths due to calamity and fire can be taken. However, there are some accident cases that turn into murder after autopsy. So, performing the autopsy at the night is not suitable."
"We conduct post mortem from 10 am to 4 pm every day. Cases related to suspicious deaths take up to four hours and cases like burns, accident take an hour. Only six surgeons are available in Coimbatore Medical College Hospital. It will be tiring if post mortem are to be done at night," he said.
He added that many district-level hospitals lacked infrastructure and manpower strength. "Unless arrangements are in place, it would be not possible to implement the order," he said.
Senior advocate PP Mohan also welcomed the announcement. "There is no doubt that performing autopsy at night would reduce waiting time of families in front of mortuary. But it would be applicable for accidents, fire and calamity-related deaths."
V Eswaran, Coimbatore-based social activist, who had unsuccessfully approached courts with the same plea, is relieved that the Centre had acted on its own. "On seeing mental agony of people waiting in front of mortuaries, I filed a petition before the Madras High Court in 2019 seeking an order to conduct an autopsy at night. However, the petition was dismissed and I was slapped with a fine of Rs 10,000 . I appealed in Supreme Court in March 2021 but it was also in vain. I contended that post-mortems were done at night in many cases especially involving influential people after obtaining special permission. I asked the courts why not the same be allowed for the common public," he said.
Speaking to TNIE, Health Secretary J Radhakrishnan said, "The Tamil Nadu government had issued a GO in 2012 - 2013 allowing postmortem during night hours. But, due to the High Court's intervention after a case, it was not implemented. Now, after consultation with directorate medical education and medical services, we would take steps to implement it."
The TNMLS member, however, said, "Based on Madras High Court's direction, the State government formed an eight-member medical expert committee on conducting night post mortem. After an analysis, the committee submitted a report that the night post mortem was unscientific and should not be allowed. Following that the government dropped the plan."