MP: Newborn dies after mother chops off extra fingers, toes
Khandwa (MP), Dec 29: A woman in a tribal hamlet in Madhya Pradesh's Khandwa district allegedly chopped off the extra fingers and toes of her newborn child out of fear that the oddity would hamper the infant's chances of getting married, police said Saturday.
The girl, who was born on December 22 with six fingers each on both hands and six toes each on both feet, succumbed to the injuries, police said.
After being alerted by media reports, the body of the child was exhumed on Saturday for further probe, an official said.
"The child was born on December 22 to a woman identified as Tarabai in Sundardev village. The woman used a sickle to chop off the infant's extra fingers and toes. She later coated the injuries with cow dung. Within hours, the infant died and was buried in the village," Dabar added.
"She feared that the child would not be able to get married in future because of these extra fingers and toes," said Dabar, adding that superstitions about it could also have led the woman to commit the act.
Superintendent of Police Ruchi Vardhan Mishra said a post mortem was conducted and the medical report was awaited following which further action would be taken.
Block Medical Officer (BMO) Dr Shailendra Kataria said action had been initiated against the local medical staff overseeing formalities related to childbirth in the village.
Police said that the woman had not been arrested as yet.
The condition is known as polydactyly or polydactylism or hyperdactyly and is a congenital physical anomaly in humans and animals resulting in supernumerary fingers and toes.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
