New Delhi:
In a tragic incident, a three-year-old girl has been abandoned by her parents in the Jhabua district of Madhya Pradesh. The child, suffering from severe malnutrition, was admitted to the district hospital on Monday by her parents, who are migrant labourers. They, however, abandoned her and left the state the very same day in search of work.
The only relative left behind was the girl's grandmother. But she too abandoned the three-year-old girl the next day.
The hospital staff is now looking after the baby; her health has also improved.
Migrant labourers abandoning their children is a common phenomenon in the Jhabua district. Due to extreme poverty, many labourers migrate to other states looking for jobs, leaving their children behind.
In the last three months, 43 children have died of malnutrition in the state's tribal villages. Nearly 71 per cent of children in tribal villages are malnourished and 82 per cent tribal children are anaemic.
Ironically, in Madhya Pradesh, the state government is running campaigns like the Beti Bachao Abhiyaan, Ladli Lakshmi and Mid-day meals to ensure proper growth and development of children.
In a separate incident in Noida, a Delhi suburb, a baby girl was found abandoned on the roadside. The baby has been admitted to a local hospital. The police are yet to trace her parents.
"The police got the baby to the hospital. The baby is healthy and is a girl. She was found on the road," said a doctor attending to her.