Forensic medicine is a division of medical sciences that deals with the analysis and diagnosis of people who have been injured by or who have met their death because of abnormal or unnatural modes such as suicide, assault, poisoning, and any other forms of brutality. Forensic medicine has a very vast scope as it includes practices such as forensic toxicology, forensic pathology, forensic radiology, forensic dentistry, and forensic psychiatry. Disciplines of forensic medicine are used in the investigation of criminal offenses, especially in establishing the causes of injury or demise. It is used for the systematic assessment of DNA, blood samples, seminal fluid, etc. Forensic toxicology uses toxicology and scientific factions like analytical chemistry, clinical chemistry, and pharmacology to help in the medico-legal analysis of poisoning, drug abuse, or death. Forensic toxicology’s foremost concern is the acquiring and scientific description of results rather than the legal outgrowths of the technology utilized. Forensic pathologists perform autopsies to find the cause of death. A forensic dentist establishes a person's identity, using teeth that differ physiologically and logged data that remains intact throughout life and afterward. Forensic radiology methods are of prime importance in providing a quick and complete specification of the harm caused which supports testimonies of eyewitnesses.  Forensic anthropology provides invaluable hints in solving violent cases. Forensic psychiatrists work with the judiciary in determining an accused individual's or witness’s soundness of mind to attend a trial, according to their mental conditions.

This course teaches how to examine a dead person’s body and obtain physical information about it to help in the investigation of the crime. It encompasses all subjects of basic medical sciences like  physiology,  pathology, anatomy, microbiology, and pharmacology, as applied to forensic medicine along with Fundamentals of forensic medicine, forensic pediatrics,  forensic psychiatry, traumatology, and immunology, general toxicology,  bio toxicology, medical toxicology, chemical toxicology, and pharmaceutical toxicology. The target is to train a student to become a specialist medico-legal personnel, instructor, and scientist who is well versed in medico-legal aspects in different scenarios. They should be alert of modern advancements in the scope of forensic medicine. They need to reach the competency level asked of by the subject of Forensic Medicine that is needed to be practiced at all levels of the medical system. A doctor should be cognizant of the principles of research methodology and should have acquired abilities in teaching and passing on to professionals, their obtained knowledge. The course equips a doctor to perform post-mortems, tox-screen of the accused or deceased for chemicals or drugs, consolidate and send samples, and trace pieces of evidence to the concerned authorities in a suitable way. They are also trained to attend court sessions as an expert witness for the aid of the prosecutors on medico-legal matters along with the power to recommend to and aid concerned officials regarding issues pertaining to medical ethics.

MD in Forensic Medicine/Forensic Medicine and Toxicology is a 3-year full-time PG course, of which the minimum qualification is an MBBS degree attained with a compulsory 1-year internship completed. Some institutions also have entrance examinations for the same. Forensic Medicine practitioners generally work with governmental law enforcement agencies such as CBI, Narcotics Department, Crime branch forensic laboratories, Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), etc.