Donating one's body after death for medical research ?
Sorry, the State Govt has no such policy
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, August 06 2010: For Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences (JNIMS), which is set to start its first term in office, a noble gesture to donate bodies of a father-son duo after their death for medical research is no reason for joy for there is neither any Act nor policy to deal with such matters.

According to a reliable source, a 73 year old man and his 42 year old son from Nambol Heigrujam offered their bodies for medical research purposes to JNIMS.

Remarkably, this is the first time in the medical history of Manipur for any individual to offer their body voluntarily for medical research.

Impressed by the Govt's determination to set up a medical institution of its own, the father-son duo offered their bodies after death for medical research hoping that the newly established medical institution may contribute something valuable to medical science and help students of JNIMS to excel.

CM at RIMS morgue : No policy as yet to accept bodies from donors for medical research

They made the offer to donate their studies after studying the feasibility of JNIMS.

If their wish is respected by JNIMS, the father-son duo would go down in the history of Manipur as the first body donors.

This very noble act may also influence others to donate their bodies for medical research.

But on enquiry, it was found that the State has neither any Act nor policy for any medical institution under it to receive donated dead bodies.

As such, the noble wish of the father and the son unlikely to be fulfilled.

On the other hand, medical institutions in India have been facing severe difficulties due to unavailability of dead bodies.

For medical students, dead bodies are something most costly than gold.

Even if you have money, bodies are not available for sale.

Again, if a body is available, to procure one entails many legal complications.

To purchase a body, one has to get through several layers of official clearances, said the source.

For each group of four medical students, a body gives the required opportunity to dissect the body from two opposing sides, two students on either side.

However, in many medical institutions, generally a bunch of students would stand around the body just watching while two or three of their colleagues dissect the body.

This is against the general rules which say that all medical students should have the practical experience of dissecting human bodies.

For JNIMS which is scheduled to begin its maiden in the latter half of the current month, 22 bodies have been procured from West Bengal after much struggle.

RIMS too procures bodies from West Bengal.

Usually, bodies are procured from West Bengal through Anatomical Society of India, West Bengal Branch, informed the source.

Even as there were many unclaimed bodies in the State in different periods of time where law and order situation is highly volatile, people killed with bullets or bodies having holes cannot be procured for medical studies.

Bodies for use in medical studies should be injected with preservative fluid within 24 hours after death.

There is no possibility of injecting preservative fluid to bodies having holes.

Even if the fluid is injected, it comes out through the hole(s), said the source.