Body found floating in barrage

Unidentified bodies found floating in Jinnah Barrage Kalabagh has become quite a common feature

MIANWALI:

A body of a man was found floating in the Jinnah Barrage a few days ago.

After a report about the presence of the body appeared on the media, the rescuers retrieved it and buried the man.

The body’s appearance has generated a discussion in society.

Unidentified bodies being found floating in Jinnah Barrage Kalabagh has become quite a common feature.

Dozens of such bodies are found every year.

It seems that no mechanism whereby the bodies are identified and handed over to their heirs is put in place as yet.

The matter came under the spotlight of the administration many years ago, but since then the matter has not been paid any attention.

It was in 2016 that a press conference was held on the matter. Until 2016, the number of bodies recovered from Jinnah Barrage was 29.

The then DPO, Sadiq Ali Dogar, had held a press conference at Jinnah Barrage Irrigation Office regarding the bodies found floating in the river.

Twenty-seven of those bodies had remained unidentified even though Mianwali Police had issued advertisements regarding each body.

Various DPOs succeeded Sadiq Ali Dogar, but no attention was paid to the matter.

There is a need for a coordinated strategy in this regard so that the bodies could be handed over to their heirs after their identification.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 8^th, 2022.