Heartrending cases of “unwanted” babies abandoned at garbage dumps, less-travelled roadsides, and hospital bathrooms are rising in Kashmir. Jammu & Kashmir’s Social Welfare Department (SWD) is grappling with the issue as an average of 10 cases are reported every month, a jump from the average of five cases reported till a few years ago.
“The worry is that not all cases are reported to us. The number of cases would be higher. At present, on average, 10 cases per month are being reported across the Union Territory,” Harvinder Kour, Director of the Mission Vatsalya, J&K told The Hindu.
Currently, the SWD’s special shelters are attending to two teenage pregnancies. “After they deliver the babies, they will be allowed to join their families,” Ms. Kour said. The growing migrant population moving into J&K has also led to a significant spike in such cases, she added.
