Friday, April 14 2006 12:02 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New York: The United Nations has advised against mass burial and cremations of dead bodies following a natural disaster, saying they pose a negligible threat to public heath.

Unnecessary mass burials and cremations can not only increase the mental suffering of victims' families but also lead to legal and other long-term difficulties by preventing proper identification, according to a new United Nations set of guidelines.

"After most natural disasters, there is a fear that dead bodies will cause epidemics," said Oliver Morgan, an honorary research fellow at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and one of the three co-editors of the book, which provides step-by-step guidelines for first responders to disasters.

"This belief is wrong - most infectious organisms do not survive beyond 48 hours in a dead body, and it is the surviving population that is more likely to spread disease. But authorities often feel political pressure to resort to unnecessary measures such as hasty mass burials," the guidelines say.

The 'Field Manual for First Responders,' published by the WHO, its regional Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, is aimed at facilitating proper identification of victims and preventing mass burials and cremations.