Within days of being born, a pair of twins at Balasore government hospital has been virtually left orphaned. The mother died minutes after giving birth to them and two days later the father abandoned them.
Last Monday, Ranju Behera gave birth to a boy and a girl at the Balasore district hospital, 210 km from here. After a few minutes, 25-year-old Ranju, who was unconscious, fell from the table in the labour room and died.
The death sparked off protests against hospital’s negligence. The district administration granted a compensation of Rs 10,000 to Ranju’s husband Katia Behera. He got the money on Wednesday and hasn’t been seen since.
“The father has abandoned the infants. He was very much there while leading the agitation to get compensation. But after the money was given, he hasn’t been seen... We’re planning to shift the infants to a care home, but taking care of them will pose problems,” Balasore district collector Alekh Chandra Padhiary told HT.
The infants are underweight — the boy weighs 1.9 kg, the girl only 1.7 kg, the doctors said.
{{/usCountry}}The infants are underweight — the boy weighs 1.9 kg, the girl only 1.7 kg, the doctors said.
{{/usCountry}}District officials said they were trying to trace Katia. A team has been sent to Gudipada village, on the outskirts of Balasore, where the couple lived.