Coronavirus curfew: Quarantined man in Ambala waits to hug his newborn son

“When they told me it as a baby boy I missed my husband immensely. I wanted to share this moment so badly with him. We had waited for it for so long,” says the 40-year-old new mother

The last time he saw his wife was when Ambala resident Ashok (name changed) waved to her as she was taken, crying in pain, to the Jindal IVF Hospital in Chandigarh for the birth of their child even as he remained quarantined on the first floor of the house.

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Ashok will only be able to see the mother and hold the child when his quarantine ends on April 3, the last day of the Navratra.

“When they told me it as a baby boy I missed my husband immensely. I wanted to share this moment so badly with him. We had waited for it for so long,” says the 40-year-old new mother.

This is their second child. Recounting the birth of their daughter in 2006, she says, “It was a different experience. People could come and see me in hospital then.”

Now back from the hospital, the mother and child have been kept in another house. “I am eagerly waiting for the quarantine period to end so that I can see my husband and celebrate together,” she adds.

MOTHER UNABLE TO VISIT DAUGHTER

Another 29-year-old woman from the city, who gave birth to her first child, a son, on Sunday, at the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, is sad that her mother, under lockdown in Delhi, could not be with her. “Mumma ko bahut miss kar rahi hun (I am missing my mother),” she says, tearfully.

Though her husband and mother-in-law are around to take care of the baby, the celebrations are muted. “No one has been visiting to see the child because of the curfew. They are excited and I am getting calls since the morning, but all that we can do is send them photographs of the baby,” she says.

When Simranjit, 31, of Khuda Ali Sher, gave birth to a daughter in 2014, all of her family members came over with gifts and blessings for the mother and child. “This time, the blessings are reaching us on mobile phones. My mother, who lives just a few kilometres away, could not come over because of the curfew,” she adds.

PRECAUTIONS TAKEN IN HOSPITALS

Every precaution is taken in hospitals because of the pandemic, says Dr Rashmi Bagga, senior gynaecologist at PGIMER “There is double barricading in the gynaecology wards. Only one or two persons are allowed with the pregnant women. Apart from this, the department head has made extensive arrangements in case we receive any Covid-19 patient.”

A helpline number, 7087007815, has also been started by the gynaecology ward to assist pregnant women.

Advising pregnant women in this scenario, Dr Bagga says they should visit the hospital only in emergencies: If they get warning signs such as leakage, high BP or no movement of the foetus.

Dr Umesh Jindal of Jindal IVF hospital suggests that new mothers to stay calm and breastfeed the child. “This is not the time for panic,” he says.