A trader in Uttar Pradesh’s Bareilly went to bury his deceased daughter who died minutes after being born prematurely, and found a newborn girl in an earthen pot buried alive almost three feet below the ground.
The trader, Hitesh Kumar Sirohi, rescued the girl and fed her milk. She is now admitted to a hospital.
Sirohi’s wife Vaishali is a sub-inspector posted in Bareilly, Superintendent of Police (City) Abhinandan Singh said.
What Happened?
“She was admitted to a private hospital after she complained of labour pain on Wednesday. On Thursday, she gave birth to a seven-month premature girl, who died within a few minutes,” NDTV quoted Singh as saying.
“As the pit was being dug, at a depth of three feet, the spade hit an earthen pot, which was pulled out. There was a baby girl lying in it,” he added.
The girl, who was alive and breathing heavily, was rushed to the district hospital.
The girl’s parents are suspected to have attempted to bury her alive. Their details are yet to be ascertained.
“As of now, her life has been saved. We are trying to trace the girl’s mother,” Singh said.
“On Saturday, the girl was referred to a higher centre with better and more medical facilities. Her condition has improved,” the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of Bareilly Vineet Shukla told PTI.
Senior Superintendent of Police Shailendra Pandey launched a probe to ascertain who had buried the girl alive.
The Logical Indian Take
In a bizarre twist of fate, one man’s burden became another man’s blessing. While one man chose to throw away his child most likely because it was a girl, another man went to bury his dead daughter with a heavy heart, only to find another infant who unwanted by the family she was born into.
The mindset that a boy is an asset and a girl is a burden, thrives till date. The abysmal male:female ratio in most parts of the country, a result of ominous practice of female foeticide, is far from even. Considered financially unproductive, girls are often abandoned, thrown away and killed. Sons are believed to be caretakers and protectors of the lineage.
The principle of gender equality is enshrined in the Indian Constitution in its Preamble, Fundamental Rights, Fundamental Duties and Directive Principles. Besides granting equality to women, the Constitution also empowers the State to adopt measures of positive discrimination in women’s favour. It is, therefore, the duty of all Indian citizens to value a female life as much as they value the life of a boy.
