Chowky at Sion hospital speeds up formalities

By Mateen Hafeez/TNN

Mumbai: A new police chowky in the Sion hospital premises now ensures that relatives of deceased do not have to wait for hours to get custody of the body.

The chowky, the first of its kind in any hospital in the state, is manned roundthe-clock by two police inspectors and four constables. Started by the Sion police station about a fortnight ago, it is meant to not only expedite the process of handing over dead or unclaimed bodies but also attend to assault cases.

The police personnel at the chowky have not been given the powers to register a First Information Report but they can complete all the initial formalities (making inquiries etc) and then send the case to the police station.

“Earlier, relatives of a deceased would come to the police station to get a no-objection certificate to get the dead body. They would have to wait for a long time since the duty officers would also be busy with other matters. Now, the police personnel in the chowky look after all these cases,’’ said senior inspector Subhash Chutake of the Sion police station. He added that additional commissioner S K Jaiswal and deputy commissioner A R Shinde had recommended a police chowky inside the hospital premises. The dean, M E Yeolekar provided around Rs 1 lakh for the construction of the chowky.

“The policemen posted in the hospital make inquiries like identification, relationship between the deceased and relatives and hand over the body within an hour,’’ said assistant commissioner of police (Sion division) Arun Desai. “The policemen in the chowky have so far handed over around 200 dead bodies and also taken around 330 accidental death registered cases which were earlier dealt with by police station officers. “On an average, seven people die in a day at Sion hospital,’’ he added.

Sub-inspector H M Gosavi, who is heading the chowky, said they get 10-15 cases a day and the chowky had proved to be convenient for citizens. “Though it would help if we also had a telephone connection since we have to go to the police station to report the serious cases,’’ he said.

The Times of India, May 11, 2005