KAKINADA: Lakshmi was reunited with her newborn at the Government General Hospital here Sunday after enduring an agonising 72 hours.
The police, who swung into action after her baby was abducted from the hospital Thursday, pieced together clues from the CCTV footage and conducted door-to-door searches before finally rescuing the infant at the house of a woman named, Pandu Ramana (28), at G. Mulapolam village in I-Polavaram mandal.
District Collector Karthikeya Mishra, SP Vishal Gunni, and Director of Medical Education Dr Korukonda Babji, handed over the female baby to Lakshmi. The CCTV footage showed Ramana walking out of the hospital with her face covered. The police deployed 10 teams, comprising 10 members each, and headed by DSP (law & order) Varma. While one team gathered information about kidnaps in the district, one searched hospitals. Another team kept a watch on milk booths and two others kept a vigil on routes leading to Chennai and Odisha.
Based on information provided by hospital staff, they searched the Old Bus Stand area. In fact, they searched house to house in the wee hours and learnt about Ramana. She had been staying in the area for two months, and left for her village on Thursday informing her neighbours about an addition to the family. The police got her phone number and and traced her to I-Polavaram mandal where she was arrested.
The police said Ramana abducted the baby as she had already had two abortions and was desperate for a child. Her husband Srinivas works as a security guard at Manasa Sarovar hotel. Police sources said Ramana knew every nook and cranny in the hospital as she had been there twice for treatment.
Besides, she was working at a private corporate hospital and was aware of all the procedures. She had been plotting to steal a baby for two months, they added.
Collector Karthikeya Mishra congratulated the SP and his team and promised to beef up security at the hospital in a couple of days.