Baby in bag shocks GRH authorities

A newborn male was found covered in a cloth  inside a bag opposite the mortuary on Government Rajaji Hospital (GRH) premises on Saturday.

Kannan, a resident of South Gate here, who found the baby, alerted the hospital authorities and R Annadurai, MLA, Madurai South, who were inspecting the developmental works of the hospital.  The authorities, who found out that the baby was alive, immediately instructed the matron to admit the baby at the Institute of Child Health and Research Centre.

Kannan found the baby after ambulances parked in front of mortuary were asked to leave the place.  Shockingly, the baby has been there since Friday. An ambulance driver on condition of anonymity said “I found the bag on Friday afternoon. I asked a rag picker near the hospital to check the bag. But she refused,” he said.

“When I found the bag on Saturday noon, at the same place, I opened it and was shocked to find a baby inside. Immediately, I alerted the police control room. But they did not take any action. Fortunately the authorities recovered the baby at 12.30 pm and admitted at the centre,” he said.  Talking about the condition of the baby, N Mohan, Dean, Madurai Medical College and Government Rajaji Hospital, said that the infant was recovering gradually. The infant was found with meningocele (a disease in which the parts of brain and parts of spinal cord form together a lump like structure). The lump was found on the back of child. However the problems could be rectified by slow medical process.

The baby must have born in a private hospital. Since it was found with problem, the parents decided to abandon the baby, the dean said.

The GRH police, who reached the spot later, picked up a woman and questioned her. However, investigations revealed that the woman had no link to the issue.