A 17-year-old girl was reportedly forced to give birth to her baby on the roadside in Jharkhand after the staff of the health centre didn't help her as she was not accompanied by a guardian.
The girl from the Saraikela-Kharsawan district in Jharkhand was in a relationship with a man in her village but he left her when she informed her that she was pregnant; also her family abandoned her considering it to be a shameful act, Daily Mail reported.
The girl was forced to leave home and was living on the streets for over four months. On August 21, when she started going into labour, she went to the local health centre for help the staff allegedly refused for she was not accompanied by a guardian.
The following morning she gave birth to a baby girl on the side of the road. Reportedly, a passer-by noticed that her clothes were soaked in blood and the umbilical cord was attached to her baby.
"The mother and baby were lying on the street in pain. I put roadblocks around them so that they don't get hit by any vehicle," a resident of the area, Om Prakash Sharma told Daily Mail.
He further added: "A man went to the health centre asking for help but they refused. They said they couldn't admit the girl as she had no guardian to take responsibility for her. We then informed the police."
Eventually, she was taken to the hospital and is now reportedly doing well.
A medical officer, at Chandil Sub Divisional Hospital, Dr Lalita Kashyap said, "Whatever has happened was wrong and unfortunate. There were only two nurses at the health centre, who were busy delivering twin babies when we were informed about the girl."
Both the baby and the girl have been reportedly shifted to Mahila Suraksha Griha- a women's shelter in Jharkhand.
