ALAPPUZHA: A 1.5-year-old Nepalese boy left to starve in a dingy room for many days by his father was rescued by Childline with the support of local police from Moonamkutty near Kayamkulam here on Friday.
The district Child Welfare Committee (CWC) sent him to the foundling home in Ernakulam. His condition is stable. CWC member K. K. Joseph said the by Childline brought the starving child with torture marks on his body to it.
His father, an employee in the Elite tea shop near Kayamkulam, had shown no interest in looking after him after his wife eloped with another man a couple of months ago.
“The Women and Children Hospital authorities here refused to admit him without a bystander. Si we sent him to the foundling home,” he said. The CWC official also said that the probationary officer had been entrusted with an inquiry into the matter, and the committee would decide whether legal action against father should be taken or not after receiving report.
It was Friday morning DySP K. Subhash of the district crime record bureau received an alert on his plight. Acting on the tip-off, he handed the information to the Childline and they swung into action and rescued him with the help of Kurathikad police.
District coordinator Sergio Fabian said the child was confined to a padlocked room of a crumbling house behind the petrol pump near Moonamkutty, Kayamkulam.
“When we broke the flimsy door of the room, the child tired of starving was fast asleep. No sooner did we reach the spot than the house owner and panchayat member arrived there giving information about the child’s condition and parents. The house owner claimed that she was giving food whenever she visited his home. Maybe it was the only intake he had for some days," Childline coordinator said.
“Since there is telltale evidence of torture on his body, a report in this regard will be handed over to CWC by the next day.”
