The dead body of a female newborn, half-eaten by stray dogs was found in the fields of Rejinthal, a village in Nyalkal Mandal of Medak District in Telangana. The body of the days-old newborn was found with her head and left hand missing from the torso, say police.
Speaking to TNM, Hadnur police station Sub Inspector M Balaswami said, "It was a baby girl, just two-three days old. The body was found in the Rejinthal village fields as it was carried there by the dogs. The head and left hand are not there, remaining legs and one right hand are there with injuries of dog bites.”
The body of the newborn has been transferred to Jharasangam government hospital. Police are not drawing any conclusions at the moment and dispelled rumours about this incident being a case of female foeticide or related to black magic. "Its too early to draw conclusions, if we get any leads we will investigate further," said Balaswami.
No missing cases of a newborn were reported at the police station or nearby stations. The police are now scanning village by village from where the body was found to check if any birth has gone unreported."We are still investigating the case,” the officer added.
Though the police have not linked the case to female infanticide, the Hyderabad-based Balala Hakkula Sangham says a deeper investigation is needed. They point fingers at past instances when newborns were found floating in sewage ditches, half-eaten by rats and used for black magic purposes.
The child protection group says in order to prevent female newborns being abandoned the Oolya cradle system run by the Telangana state government must be revived and advertised in the rural parts of Telangana."It is very necessary to organise awareness on cradle scheme, where unwanted children will be brought up and given for adoption and the mother/father who want to abandon their child need not even give their identity. The Women and Child Welfare Department should hold awareness programme on the scheme, said Achyuta Rao, Honorary President with the activism group.