Human Bone Trade

Human skeletons models are an integral part of any medical schools teaching process. But it is the way these models are obtained is worrisome and raises serious ethical and moral questions. NPR had a story on how most of the human skeletal models used by medical schools across the world are stolen from graves in Kolkata, India. The problem is so serious that many of the cemeteries have been emptied of their dead bodies.
Most of these human skeletal remains are exported to the US and other western countries. Though the export of bones is banned in India by law, it still flourishes because it is legal in the US (the major buyer) and Europe to import human bones for educational purposes.
This raises serious ethical questions and calls in question whether the schools in the US and Europe check for the source and the validity of the remains obtained. While an informed consent is required by individuals when they undergo any medical procedure, the same is not required for obtaining the remains for study. Unless this changes the illegal trade in bones will continue.
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