NALGONDA: In pursuance of a central government mandate, the Women and Child Welfare Department has launched a programme to install special cradles in maternity wards of government hospitals, district headquarters hospitals, and Shishu Gruhas (children’s homes) state wide.
This initiative seeks to protect abandoned infants, especially girls, who are frequently left in hazardous locations due to being born out of wedlock, from illicit relationships, or because parents are unwilling to raise a female child.
The central government has observed a troubling pattern of newborns being discarded in drains, dustbins, and roadside bushes, often resulting in death due to exposure or attacks by stray animals and venomous creatures.
To combat this issue, the government has directed all states to establish “cradle baby reception centres” at healthcare facilities where deliveries take place and at children’s homes. No information will be collected about individuals leaving infants in these cradles, and the babies will be transferred to Shishu Gruhas for adoption.
The programme builds on a successful 2007 initiative in Nalgonda’s Devarakonda constituency, where female infanticide and the sale of baby girls were rampant in tribal areas. The Nalgonda district administration introduced a cradle at the Devarakonda government hospital, tracing parents, offering counselling, and facilitating reunions when possible.
Despite these efforts, child abandonment due to illicit relationships and other factors continues to cause infant deaths. To address this, Nalgonda district has reinstated the cradle system.
Nalgonda ICDS Officer K. Krishnaveni informed TNIE that District Collector Ila Tripathi ordered the installation of cradles, which were set up on Wednesday in the maternity ward of the district headquarters hospital and six other maternity hospitals in the district.