Kendrapara: In a significant development in the newborn girl selling incident in Odisha's Kendrapara district, as many as four persons were arrested by police today.

The arrested were identified as Surya Nursing Home proprietor Iftekar Alam, ASHA worker Annapurna Moharana, sweeper of the hospital SK Manas and newborn buyer SK Shabbington.

They have been arrested under Sections 317, 109 and 81 of juvenile justice act, informed Kendrapara SP Dayanidhi Gochhayat.

Notably, 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.