The Indian Dental Association (IDA) is in talks with defence authorities to create a dental database of defence personnel that can be used for forensic analysis.
Dr. Ashok Dhoble, honorary secretary general, IDA, said, “The database will help in identifying bodies using dental forensics.” Dr. Dhoble said creating the database would be easy, as defence personnel undergo regular dental check-ups. “The data will be handy during post-mortem examination.”
The idea was discussed at a conference of doctors on ‘Disaster victim identification’ on Friday. Dr. Emilio Nuzzolese from University of Catanzaro in Italy, who works closely with Interpol, shared his experience on the importance of forensic dental identification. Experts also said that dental analysis was much cheaper than DNA analysis.
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As few doctors specialise in forensic odontology, the IDA has started a one-year fellowship in the field. Its first batch of 20 students graduated this year. Dr. Hemlata Pandey, the city’s only practising forensic odontologist, said the field needs more attention. She said, “After completing my studies in the U.K., I returned to India hoping to use my expertise in the field. But there seemed to be no opportunities.”
Dr. Pandey said that she eventually secured a job at KEM Hospital because they had a case that required dental analysis. She said in child abuse cases, where parents do not register a case, bite marks can help identify the nature of abuse and the abuser.
Dr. Pandey said, “Earlier, doctors would only take note of bite marks on the victim’s body, but would not conduct an analysis. Today, it is possible to match bite marks with dental scans of the accused. The courts have accepted dental forensics as a legitimate scientific resource for identification.”
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