Baripada: In a disturbing incident, a 17-year-old girl delivered a premature baby in the washroom of a government hospital at Betnoti in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district.
As per sources, both the mother and the newborn girl are in a critical state because of complications arising from preterm delivery at seven months. They have been shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital (DHH) at Baripada for treatment.
The incident came to light after a youth, allegedly responsible for the minor girl’s pregnancy, was arrested by the police based on a complaint lodged by her family. The accused youth has been identified as Sibanarayan Hembram.
The teenager, a Plus II first-year student studying and living in a private hostel in Betnoti, was reportedly in a relationship with Sibanarayan and both had physical intimacy. However, after learning about the girl’s pregnancy, the youth started avoiding her.
As per information, the girl suddenly had abdominal pain and fever on Monday. When she visited Betnoti Community Health Centre (CHC), doctors found she was around seven months pregnant. After check-up, the girl went to the washroom at the hospital but started having contractions and delivered a baby girl there.
As the baby was born premature and underweight, both the mother and the newborn were immediately shifted to the DHH. The newborn weighed around 1.5 kg which was too low. Given the health risks of both the mother and the baby, they were sent to the DHH, said a doctor.
The teen’s mother filed a formal complaint with the police following her delivery. A case was registered under POCSO Act and police have detained the accused youth, a police official said.