Baripada: A Class 10 student from Betnoti block in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district, who was reportedly around seven months pregnant, gave birth to a baby boy at Pandit Raghunath Murmu (PRM) Medical College and Hospital in Baripada on Wednesday morning, raising serious concerns about the safety, welfare and monitoring of students in residential educational institutions.
According to sources, the student had been staying at the hostel of the government-run Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya in Dhanpur while pursuing her studies. On Tuesday, she suddenly fell ill and her condition worsened, prompting school authorities to take her to Betnoti hospital. During the preliminary medical examination there, doctors found she was pregnant and referred her to PRM Medical College and Hospital in Baripada for advanced care, where she delivered the baby the following morning.
Some reports suggest the student may be over 18 years of age, though this has not been officially verified. No police complaint has been registered in connection with the incident so far. It is being speculated that the relationship leading to the pregnancy developed during the summer vacation when she visited her home, but the exact circumstances remain unconfirmed.
The case has also prompted questions about how an advanced pregnancy went unnoticed in a residential school that is expected to provide regular health check-ups for students and where hostel matrons are said to collect menstrual hygiene pads from boarders every month. Attempts to reach the school’s headmistress for comment have been unsuccessful, and it is unclear whether authorities were aware of the student’s condition before she was hospitalised.
The incident has intensified calls for a thorough departmental inquiry into possible lapses in supervision and healthcare arrangements at the institution. Full details are still awaited pending official clarification from the authorities concerned.
