BALANGIR: IN a case of negligence towards girl child, newborn twin girls were found abandoned at the railway station in Balangir. The one-month-old twins were found inside a toilet at the station. They were packed in a bag and were spotted by a passenger early in the morning. A passenger informed railway officials about the matter, who intimated Childline and the officials of District Child Protection Unit. Acting on the information, the Childline officials rushed to the station and rescued the two babies.
The infants were taken to Balangir Medical College and Hospital (MCH), where they were put in Sick Newborn Care Unit (SNCU). The babies weighed around 2.250 kg and 1.600 kg, respectively. The babies were taken to the Child Welfare Committee and then sent to Special Adoption Agency (SAA) for care and protection. However, this is not the first incident when an infant was abandoned. More than six boys and girls were found in different places of the town in critical conditions in the last one year.
Though the Government is campaigning for ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’, negligence towards girl children continues to prevail. Speaking about the incident, chairman of Child Welfare Committee J Mohanty said the twins are currently in Special Adoption Agency. As per the law, the committee would proceed further on the issue, added Mohanty. “It may be a case of illicit affair. A mother might have abandoned the babies due to compulsion,” said social worker, Jaya Krishna Mishra.