Kendrapara newborn selling: Baby handed over to parents

Kendrapara: The newborn girl, who was sold after her birth at Surya Nursing Home in Odisha’s Kendrapara district recently, was handed over to her parents by the district Child Welfare Committee today.

The infant was brought from Sishu Bhavan in Cuttack by the members of the committee and given to her parents.

The baby girl was allegedly sold by her parents for Rs 7,500 on August 1 for paying the medical expenses for delivery at the nursing home.

Nirakar Moharana of Righagarh village under Rajnagar block had taken her pregnant wife Gitanjali Moharana to Kendrapara district headquarters hospital where doctors referred her to Surya Nursing Home for delivery. Gitanjali delivered a baby girl at the clinic. However, the clinic authority demanded the couple to pay Rs 7,500 towards medical expenses.

When the poor couple expressed their helplessness to pay the medical charges, the clinic staff arranged a buyer for selling the baby girl. Finally, the baby was sold at Rs 7,500.

When the incident came to fore, the couple clarified that they were bound to sell their baby due to pressure mounted on them by the clinic authority to pay the delivery expenses. They confessed the selling of their child out of poverty. As the couple already has two daughters, they expressed their inability to bear expenses of raising another daughter.

Investigating into the incident, police had arrested four persons– Surya Nursing Home proprietor Iftekar Alam, ASHA worker Annapurna Moharana, sweeper of the hospital SK Manas and newborn buyer SK Shabbington.