Grotesque view thru' a hospital window

"Dogs rush in and dig out the organs," Anwar, a patient, said of the horrible sight -- his bed close to the window offering a wide view of the yard.

"Sweepers don't follow the standard procedure. They are indifferent to pollution or the impact of open-air dumping on health," said a professor of the hospital that averages 15 amputations a month.

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"If the poisonous organs are not disposed of scientifically, the impact could be harmful to the environment and local residents," the professor added, asking not to be named.

Some graves where the body parts were buried were found empty and bones covered in mud littered the compound -- a scene of extreme ugliness blamed on the sweepers.

Doctors say the sweepers throw the human organs into dustbins instead of burying them in the ground.

But a sweeper denied the allegation and said: "Dogs dig up the buried organs and scatter them around. There is no barrier and dogs have a free access to the premises."

Orthopaedic patients allege the sweepers do not bury the amputated parts -- they just cover them with soil.

The NITOR has now 56 sweepers to clean the hospital that treats nearly 1,000 orthopaedic patients a day.

"We are running short of logistic support. The sweepers are unaware of the methods of disposing of toxic and non-toxic amputated organs," said NITOR Director Dr Siraj-Ul-Islam.

"We have no machines to separate organic and inorganic materials for clinical disposal," Dr Islam said, adding Dhaka City Corporation should take initiatives for clinical waste disposal.

The NITOR authorities seem unable to control the sweepers. "The sweepers don't go by the rules and are capable of holding the authorities hostage," a NITOR official said. "If they go on strike, the hospital will collapse," he added explaining why the authorities cannot take strong action against them.