Santosh happy with odd mortuary work

By Hari Prasad Koirala,Urlabari, Aug. 18: While most young people of his age are busy studying or finding regular jobs, Santosh Marik, 22, from Gadhi Rural Municipality-2, Sunsari, is doing very unusual work. 

For the past six years, he has been dissecting and stitching bodies at the mortuary of Madan Bhandari Hospital and Trauma Centre in Urlabari, Morang.

Santosh was only 16 when he started the job in 2019. For him, the mortuary became both a way to earn and a responsibility. “It is said that our duty is assigned by God. At first it was difficult, but now I feel nothing while doing this work,” he said.

Santosh’s childhood was full of hardship. His father died when he was young, and the family of five brothers often struggled to manage two meals a day. Santosh was just 11 years old when he left home to earn for himself.

He worked as a cleaner at Mechi Hospital and later at Aamda Hospital, Damak. After that, he went to Kathmandu looking for better opportunities. But people did not trust such a young boy with serious work, so he could not find a stable job there.

When the Primary Health Centre in Mangalbare (now Madan Bhandari Hospital and Trauma Centre) needed staff for post-mortem work, Santosh got the chance through his maternal uncle’s help. 

Many people doubted him, saying, “A 16-year-old boy will be too scared to do this job.” But with courage, he accepted the challenge and has continued ever since.

Traditionally, the Marik community (a Dom community) is known for cleaning work. 

Many in this field also depend on alcohol to perform their job. But Santosh has broken this stereotype; he does not drink, yet handles even the toughest cases.

Usually, post-mortems are done within two or three days after death. But Santosh has also worked on difficult cases, decomposed, disfigured, or unidentified bodies.

Santosh is not alone in this demanding job. He shares the work with 46-year-old Binod Marik. 

The hospital gives them monthly shifts for dissection and stitching. When not working in the mortuary, both of them do the job of cleaning at the hospital. 

Still, Santosh feels the salary is unfair. “I heard other hospitals pay up to Rs. 25,000 for a similar job. But here, we get much less for the same work. Who will speak for us? Who will listen to us?” he asked.

According to hospital information officer Nirajan Poudel, the trauma centre conducts post-mortems of people who died unexpectedly from Urlabari, Ratuwamai, Pathari Shanishchare, Letang, Miklajung, and Kanepokhari areas of Morang.

Records show that in the fiscal year 2024/25, the hospital carried out 185 post-mortems. In fiscal year 2023/24, there were 203 cases, and in 2022/23, there were 198 cases.