Kollam: The photograph published with the caption, “This is not a ghost story, but a heartbreaking tale of life,” remained etched in the minds of Malayalis for years. Readers may still remember the report that appeared on the front page of Mathrubhumi on November 25, 1998, along with the photograph of Santhosh walking with an unidentified body on his shoulder. Santhosh (54), who was given a job as a mortuary attendant at the Kollam District Hospital following the report, died on Sunday.

Santhosh devoted much of his life to performing the last rites of unclaimed bodies that no one was willing to take responsibility. He was also a constant source of help to the police. He was willing to pick bodies and perform other tasks without hesitation, even in the most unpleasant and distressing circumstances. It was this life that was featured in Mathrubhumi.

Santhosh first came to Kollam District Hospital at the age of 5 to care for his father, who was suffering from cancer and had severe wounds. His father remained ill for 15 years. Santhosh had to discontinue his studies and eventually made the hospital premises his world and his school of life.

He earned Rs 75 for helping take unclaimed bodies from the hospital for burial. At the time, handcarts could not enter the cemetery, so the body had to be carried on the shoulder from the gate to the burial site. Even when relatives were reluctant to touch people who had died of rabies, Santhosh would take responsibility for handling the bodies.

Although he was a native of Olukkupara, the district hospital and its surroundings were Santhosh's world. He later became a permanent employee there. He had recently been bedridden after suffering a stroke.

As Santhosh joined the countless unidentified bodies he had helped bury, his extraordinary life story has once again returned to memory.