Police recovered a human skeleton from an abandoned well on the premises of the 250-bed Pabna General Hospital on Tuesday afternoon.
The discovery occurred while Public Works Department (PWD) cleaners were performing routine maintenance, including clearing drains and cutting bushes near the hospital kitchen on the north side. Workers noticed suspicious remains inside a manhole/well adjacent to a septic tank and immediately alerted hospital authorities.
Upon receiving the report, Pabna Sadar Police arrived at the scene, opened the manhole, and retrieved the remains. The discovery has sparked significant curiosity and concern among hospital staff and local residents.
Dr. Zahidul Islam, the hospital’s Resident Medical Officer (RMO), stated that the well had been abandoned for a long time and was rarely accessed or cleaned. "The hospital authorities were unaware of the presence of these remains. We have turned the matter over to the police for investigation," he said.
Sanjay Kumar Saha, Inspector (Operation) of Pabna Sadar Police Station, confirmed that the skeleton is now in police custody. An unnatural death case is being filed.
"The remains appear to be quite old," Inspector Saha noted. "We are investigating several possibilities: it could be a specimen discarded from medical practice, or an individual who entered the manhole years ago. We cannot yet determine the gender, age, or exact time of death."
The remains will be sent to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for DNA testing to establish an identity.
