KENDRAPARA/BHUBANESWAR:The district administration on Monday admitted Gita Murmu and her newborn to the District Headquarters Hospital on Tuesday, a day after she attempted to sell the baby. Poverty had forced the woman of Bhamaradiapatana village to sell her newborn to a couple for `2,000.
Gita (32), sold the baby to Manoj Sahoo and his wife Mamta of the same village. Gita, who already has a 12-year-old girl and 10-year-old son, was deserted by her husband, Haldhar Murmu, six months ago. The child sale came to light after some villagers saw the newborn in Mamta’s custody. After inquiring, they came to know that Gita had sold her baby for Rs 2,000 to Mamta as the latter only had a 10-year-old daughter and no son.
After rescuing the newborn and handing him over to Gita, the district unit of Child Welfare Committee (CWC) admitted the two to District Headquarters Hospital and the condition of the mother-son duo was not well. After they recover, Gita and her children will be shifted to a government-run short stay home in Kendrapara. Gita’s two other children will be admitted to a government-run residential school, chairman of the district unit of CWC , Sishir Kumar Routray, said. Collector Muralidhar Mallick said the district administration will provide all help to the tribal woman and her children.
NHRC seeks report on child sale
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Tuesday asked Kendrapada Collector to submit a detailed report on the child sale incident and steps taken or proposed to be taken for relief and rehabilitation of Gita’s family. Taking suo motu cognizance of media reports during its camp sitting here that a homeless ST woman was forced to sell her newborn for Rs 2,000, the apex human rights panel has directed the district collector to submit the report in four weeks.