Parliament Question: Tampering of Autopsy

GOVERNMENTOFINDIA MINISTRYOFHEALTH AND FAMILYWELFARE DEPARTMENTOFHEALTH AND FAMILYWELFARE LOK SABHA UNSTARREDQUESTION NO. 2218 TOBE ANSWERED ON31ST JULY,2026 TAMPERINGOFAUTOPSY 2218.SHRIPARSHOTTAMBHAI RUPALA: Will the Minister of HEALTHANDFAMILYWELFARE be pleased tostate: (a) whether the Union Government, in coordination with State Governments, has taken measures to prevent manipulation or tampering of autopsy reports, including standardized postmortem protocolsanddigital recordsinthe country, if so, the detailsthereof,State-wise; (b) whether mandatory use of certified Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) has been enforced by the Government for doctors and morgue staff during postmortems to prevent occupational exposure to infections such as tuberculosis, HIV and hepatitis, along with regularhealthscreening andtraining,if so, the detailsthereof; and (c) whether the Government has initiated programmes to upgrade postmortem infrastructure across the country, including modern mortuaries, ventilation and bio-safety systems, advanced forensic equipmentandadequate staffing,if so, the detailsthereof, State-wise? ANSWER THE MINISTER OFSTATE IN THE MINISTRYOFHEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE (SMT. ANUPRIYAPATEL) (a) to (c): ‘Health’ being a State subject, the primary responsibility to address the issue of manipulation or tampering of autopsy reports and to provide standardized postmortem protocolsalongwith digital recordslieswith the respective States/UTs. Nonetheless, the Government of India enacted the Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Act, 2010 (CE Act) and notified the Clinical Establishments (Central Government) Rules, 2012 amended in 2018 and 2020 (CE Rules) to provide for registration and regulation of Government (except those of Armed Forces) as well as private clinical establishments belonging to recognized systems of medicine. As per CE Act, the clinical establishments are required to fulfill the conditions of minimum standards for each type of service provided.Further, everyclinicalestablishment havingMortuary shall complywith the minimum standards for Mortuary. The minimum standards for Mortuary has been approved byNational Council for ClinicalEstablishments. The CE Act is adoptedby19States/UTs (12 States, viz., Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh,Mizoram, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Telangana, Uttarakhand & Uttar Pradesh and 7 UTs, viz., Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh,Lakshadweep & Puducherry). ‘Health’ being a State subject, the States / UTs which have adopted the CE Act are primarily responsible for enforcing/implementing the provisions of the CE Act in the respective States/UTs. The Act has empowered a registering authority at the district level underthe chairmanship of the District Collector/ District Magistrate totake actionsincluding imposing penalties in respect of violation of its provisions. The Act also provides for cancellation of registration, if the provisions of the Act are not complied with. The clinical establishments in the States/UTs, which have not adopted and implemented the CE Act, are registered andregulated bythe respective StateActs. *****