HYDERABAD: In another case of infanticide, a newborn baby was found abandoned at a garbage dump near Drugs Control Administration in SR Nagar on Friday. The body of the dead baby, wrapped in a towel and newspaper, appeared to have been lying the dump for many days, as it had turned blue and was decaying amidst other waste. The baby’s gender was identified as male and the umbilical cord was absent, suggesting it was possibly 15-20 days old.
According to officials, passersby saw the body in the dump and informed the officials. The body of the baby has been sent to Gandhi Hospital for post-mortem and further investigations. While there is no CCTV in the immediate vicinity of the area, officials said investigations were on to see if any links could be established on who disposed the baby.
A case has been registered under Section 318 of the IPC for concealment of birth by secret disposal of dead body and can fetch imprisonment for two years for those guilty. The incident is highly worrisome, as it is the second such case in less than a month, after an abandoned dead baby was found at Meerpet. That baby was also discarded in a similar manner at a garbage dump wrapped in polythene.
That incident occurred on July 19. Activists and experts on adolescent and women healthcare note that there is an urgent need to spread awareness on sexual health among teenagers and young girls to prevent such cases.