Alappuzha: The newborn surrendered to the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) here by its mother because of poverty would be taken to the private foundling home at Ernakulam by next week. The CWC took the decision as per the advice of doctors who were providing care to the baby at the Women and Children Hospital (W and C hospital). The newborn has been in neonatal care unit at the hospital for the last few days.
Last Monday the woman arrived at the hospital along with her minor boy, and she delivered on the next day. It was on May 23that the woman from the outskirts of Alappuzha town handed over her sixth child to CWC, claiming that she had no income to feed the child. The woman said that it was her sixth child and she had four other minor children including three girls and one boy. Her eldest daughter was 18-years- old and married. The woman’s alcoholic husband, a wood cutter, came home once in a while. The woman, who was from the under-privileged scheduled tribe community, was selling lottery tickets in Cherthala town to make ends meet.
“The CWC has decided to hand over the newborn to a private foundling home in Ernakulam after doctors declared its condition to be satisfactory. Since the district has no foster care facilities, we refer newborn cases to Ernakulam. We are told that the baby has grown enough to travel long distance. The date will be decided in the next sitting to be held on Saturday”, said KK Joseph, Member, CWC. This is the first newborn the CWC has received this year. Last year it had handled three cases. While two babies were found abandoned in January and May at W and C hospital premises, an unwed mother surrendered her newborn after she delivered at Medical College Hospital (MCH) Vandanam in October.
