The city government today submitted draft guidelines on cadaver donation in hospitals to the Delhi High Court following a direction from it.
The draft guidelines, framed by Health and Family Welfare department, detail the procedure to be followed for donation of a dead body for medical education and research purposes, including that an application for donation has to be made by a near relative to Head of the Department of Anatomy of the concerned medical institution.
Also, all government teaching medical institutions will have to maintain a register where any person can register for whole body donation after death.
The Delhi government informed the bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice R S Endlaw, that the draft guidelines have been sent for approval of the Lieutenant Governor following which the court directed it to file a status report by
November 19.
"The near relative could be either of the parents, grandparent, spouse, son, daughter or grandchild who would have to give the application (for cadaver donation) to the medical institution," said the guidelines filed through Delhi Government's Standing Counsel Zubeda Begum
It suggested, if death occurred anywhere other than the hospital, then it will be mandatory for the medical institute to inform the police station of its area in writing.
Standing Counsel submitted that these guidelines shall not apply to an unclaimed body which is covered under the Delhi Anatomy Act, 1953.
"Guidelines shall apply to all medical institutions located in the National Capital Territory of Delhi," She said.
Earlier, the court had directed the government to draft guidelines regarding cadaver donation after taking note of a letter alleging that due to procedural delays, the body of a woman donor could not be utilised by the Organ Retrieval and Banking Organisation (ORBO) of the AIIMS.
It had issued notices to the Health Ministry, AIIMS, Delhi government and the city police saying that the committee of judges, which decided to treat the letter as a PIL, felt that regulations can be framed to ensure that such incidents do not recur.
