Baby starved for two days found alive

A less than one-year-old baby boy was found miraculously alive on Monday, hungry and lying down with his dead mother, in Pimpri-Chinchwad, Maharashtra. The mother had reportedly been dead for two days as no one reached out.

29-year-old Sarawasti Rajesh Kumar was suspected to have died on Saturday, which means the baby had been not fed since then.

“The baby was lying next to her silently… he was not crying,” said an official investigating the case. Due to the alarming situation of COVID-19 in India, the neighbours were hesitant to come near the body or even hold the baby.

Police constables, Sushila Gabhale and Rekha Waze, who arrived at the scene then fed him.

“The child had a little fever when we showed him to the doctor. He told us to feed him well, the rest is fine” said their colleague Rekha. They also took him to hospital where he tested negative for COVID-19.

As per details, the woman was living with her husband, who had gone to their native place in Uttar Pradesh, and their child. The family lived on rent while the owners of the house lived at a distance. Since the landlords were COVID positive, they did not check on Kumar until a stench started emanating from the room. Authorities immediately alerted the husband of his wife’s demise.

While it is not clear how the woman died, Police Inspector Prakash Jadhav of Dighi told the Indian Express that they “found some pills next to her body.”

“We suspect the woman committed suicide by consuming the pills. Her body has been sent for post-mortem to YCM Hospital. The viscera has been preserved…the cause of death is not known so far,” said the official.