Ranchi: The mortuary at state-run Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) here is dying a terrible, worm-wriggling death and the health authorities are not even blinking.
Four out of the five deep freezers at the morgue have been defunct for at least three months now, but hospital officials are doing precious little to get them up and running. Result: a mound of decomposing bodies, the horrible stench of which is making stomachs churn.
Praveen Lohia, the president of nonprofit Mukti Sanstha that disposes of unclaimed bodies at RIMS, said he had complained to the hospital authorities in April. "Freezers not functioning at a mortuary is an issue that requires urgent attention. But, none (at RIMS) took note (of my complaint)," he told this newspaper.
Lohia has also highlighted the condition of the hospital morgue on his Twitter page and tagged chief minister Raghubar Das, Rajya Sabha MP Mahesh Poddar and Ranchi deputy commissioner Rai Mahimapat Ray.
According to Mukti Sanstha records, 38 unclaimed bodies from the Bariatu hospital were cremated at Jumar ghat near Booty More on Sunday.
"We usually hold mass cremations every two months or so. The bodies (we got from RIMS) this time were a horrible sight. Some had worms crawling all over; other were a decaying mass of flesh," Lohia said, adding that he led a delegation that met health secretary Nidhi Khare on Monday.
While four of the freezers are beyond use, the lone surviving one also seems to be on its last leg.
"The ideal temperature to preserve a body through refrigeration is below 40°F, which is roughly between 2°C to 4°C. This sufficiently delays decomposition. At RIMS, the only operational freezer runs at 20-25°C. Obviously, bodies are decaying fast. The more concerning issue is that no one is bothered here," Lohia said.
A member of staff at the hospital said the morgue had a capacity of 38 bodies, but was almost always overcrowded. "The situation slightly improved after Mukti Sanstha started cremating unclaimed bodies from 2014," he said.
Superintendent of RIMS Dr Vivek Kashyap at first feigned ignorance about the defunct cold chambers. Later, after speaking to his office staff, he said: "Some of the freezers need repairs. We have called the agency that looks after them. They will start functioning in a day or two."
