Rayagada: A nine-day-old infant was allegedly sold off by her parents for just Rs 20,000 due to abject poverty in Nuapada Sahi under Chandili police limits in Rayagada district.
The infant’s mother, identified as Kumud Ganta and father Rahul Dhanbed, reportedly sold the baby girl to a couple named Nandini and K. Raj Shekhar from Kottapeta village on November 11, 2024. Notably, the baby was born on November 3.
According to reports, Kumud gave birth to a baby girl on November 3. Another woman enquired about Kumud’s family condition. When Kumud explained their financial hardship and expressed inability maintain the family, the woman approached Kumud to give her child to her niece
“A woman came to me after my delivery and asked how was I managing the family. I told her about our struggles. She said that that her niece has no children and asked if I would give her my baby. She promised that God would bless me and said they would give me Rs 20,000 for the child. I agreed because I felt helpless,” said Kumud.
Kumud further explained that her family does not have a ration card and, therefore, cannot receive PDS rice or any government benefits. They are currently living in her brother’s house and buying rice from outside.
“We don’t get rice from the government as we have no ration card. We buy our ration from the market. We also don’t receive any other government support to maintain our family. We’re staying with my brother because we don’t have a house of our own,” Kumud added.
She, however, denied selling her child. She said “We didn’t sell our baby. How could we manage to take care of two children?”
The infant’s father, Rahul Dhanbed, said it was difficult to manage the family due to financial hardship. He works as a helper in a vehicle but still finds it hard to support his two children.
“I barely earn enough to feed my family. So, I agreed to give away my child. We don’t get government rice and have to buy it from outside. With two children, it is too hard to survive,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) and the Women and Child Development (WCD) Department have launched an investigation into the matter.
The Child Protection Unit, along with social worker Satyapriya Pradhan, received a tip-off about the situation and visited the family to investigate. They have requested that the baby be returned to them.
“We have received information that the child was sold, but it appears to be an illegal adoption due to poverty. We are asking the person who took the child to bring her back tomorrow and hand her over to the CWC. If the parents are unable to care for the child, they must surrender her to the government,” said Satyapriya Pradhan.
