‘Hyderabad needs another vehicle to carry the dead to mortuary’

HYDERABAD: Working for the only forensic corpse carrier (FCC) in the city, Abdul Nayeem has his hands full. And given the demand, the 37-year-old hopes that the authorities add at least one more vehicle to the fleet soon.

The FCC, which was launched in October 2016 by the then Hyderabad police commissioner Mahendar Reddy, is currently the sole vehicle dedicated for transporting bodies of the deceased from the crime scene to the mortuary. “Since the launch, the vehicle has transferred over 500 bodies to mortuary. In a day we pick nearly four bodies — sometimes even more. The vehicle can carry two bodies at a time and another vehicle will make it easy for us,” said Nayeem.

According to N Venkanna, scientific officer and head of Clues Team, a proposal to add one more FCC has already been tabled. He hoped that other carrier will be made operational within the next couple of months. Currently, the FCC carries bodies of those who fall under the purview of Hyderabad commissionerate alone. Officials said, to address the crunch, other commissionerates should also take up the initiative and launch FCCs. “For the entire city, we will need at least three such vehicles,” Venkanna added.

In a day, FCC workers at times, have to carry more than three bodies at one go. “If there is a case of a whole family that committed suicide, we have to carry all members together, However, space inside the vehicle is only for two. Another vehicle is much needed,” said Narsingh, who also works for the FCC.

Last month, the vehicle carried around 40 such bodies, including some that were unidentified. “Workers carrying these bodies are trained in a way that no evidence is destroyed during commute. They are skilled in handling the bodies with care,” said Venkanna.