KATHMANDU: Nepal Police has maintained the records of 447 unclaimed or unidentified bodies, including 114 of females, found across the country in 2024.
According to data released by Dead Body Management Portal of the security agency, the bodies include those of three women. The bodies have been managed in line with the 'Unidentified and Unclaimed Bodies Management Guideline'. The guideline requires the security agency to manage the bodies unidentified and unclaimed due to difficulty in tracing the relatives or guardians of the persons following their sudden death in accidents, natural disasters, homicides or any other incidents.
The identification process of the body involves on-site observation, photograph and photo-attached ID card. Physical features (age, sex, height, birth mark, tattoo, scar, mole etc.) of the deceased person; wrist watch, shoes/sandals, clothes or ornaments worn by the person may also be taken as the basis for his/her identification. The nearest police office provides information to the representatives of the local level and ward if the body of any person was found in an unidentified or unclaimed state. Subsequently, police will conduct a deed of public inquiry on the spot in the presence of the local level representatives.
If the body could not be identified despite adopting all procedures, the body will be referred to the nearest hospital for post-mortem. If the post-mortem report shows it a murder, police will launch a criminal investigation, Then, the details of unidentified or unclaimed bodies will be posted on the Dead Body Management Portal of Nepal Police along with their photos and physical features. After a certain period, police together with social organisations and local level may dispose of the body or hand it over to educational institutions through the TU Teaching Hospital. However, the records of the bodies along with its DNA and iris scan report are maintained and kept safely by the police for identification at any time in future.
Nepal Police has launched a website containing details of unidentified bodies. Inspector General of Police Basanta Bahadur Kunwar had inaugurated the website udb.nepalpolice.gov.np. This website has been effective to facilitate the relevant families and others to identify the bodies. The website was developed after the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee of the Parliament directed the government to create a separate webpage with the aim of properly managing the bodies of those who died due to accidents, natural disasters or other causes and could not be identified or whose heirs or relatives could not find them.
