Odisha: Newborn Girl Sold For Rs 10K By Parents In Balangir Rescued From Bargarh

Balangir: A newborn baby girl, who was allegedly sold for Rs 10,000 by her parents in Odisha's Balangir district, was rescued by police from Bargarh district on Monday.

Sources said the baby, born to Kanaka Rana and Nila Rana of Bagdor in Titilagarh on July 20, was handed over by her parents to a couple in Bargarh's Paikamal. When authorities received a tip-off, the child protection unit along with police reached Paikmal and rescued the baby girl.

Balangir district CWC in-charge chairperson Lina Babu stated that the infant was rescued from the house of a couple at Paikmal. However, the Paikmal couple denied allegations of purchasing the child, and claimed that they brought the baby keeping in view the dire situation of her biological parents.

When asked, the infant's biological father cited financial hardships and said he gave the baby to a 'friend' and accepted Rs 10,000 in return. He said he often migrates to other states for work and could not raise the third child. "We are struggling to survive. We are living in abject poverty. We gave away our daughter because we knew we cannot support her. I had taken Rs 10,000 from that person."

However, Rana failed to identify the so-called friend he handed the baby to, which raised suspicion.

After the baby was rescued, Balangir Additional District Magistrate Vijaya Nand Sethi said, "We have started a joint probe into illegal child trafficking or adoption. All the facts will come out once the investigation is over."

As per latest reports, the rescued newborn girl has been admitted to the SNCU ward at Bhima Bhoi Medical College and Hospital in Balangir. According to the medical team, the baby is safe and in good health and under constant supervision of the doctors.

Meanwhile, former Kantabanji MLA Santosh Singh Saluja criticised the state government, stating that welfare schemes have failed to reach the poor in the district. "Balangir district was once declared free of hunger and poverty, but there is no end to plight of poor as no scheme has been implemented for the poor here. It is very unfortunate that this poor family has been accused of selling their girl child just a few days after her birth," he said.

On the other hand, Titlagarh MLA Naveen Jain, who visited the concerned family in Balangir, claimed there was an informal agreement between the father and his friend. "They had decided that if the baby was a boy, the parents would keep it, and in case a girl was born, the friend would raise her," the MLA said. As both parents involved denied any monetary transaction, Jain stated that the Rana family would now be covered under relevant government schemes.

Notably, this is not the first such instance of child sale allegations coming from the district. Last year, seven persons were arrested in connection with three separate cases of child trafficking or illegal child sale in Balangir.

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