Unable to afford treatment, TN woman kills dengue-affected infant son, self

The deadly dengue has claimed 27 lives in Tamil Nadu so far

Unable to afford treatment for her six-month-old son diagnosed with suspected dengue, a woman in Tamil Nadu threw the child into a well before jumping in after. The incident came to light when the woman's husband went looking for the missing duo and found their bodies floating in a nearby well in Namakkal district of Tamil Nadu.

32-year-old Anbukodi is said to have taken the extreme step after her infant son was diagnosed with suspected dengue by a district hospital. On Monday the victim's husband, Perisaswamy, a barber by profession, took the child to a hospital in Salem district. After running tests, the doctors informed them of the infant's condition. With bills running up to Rs 5,000 per day, the couple could not afford to continue the treatment.

Dejected, the couple returned home with their ill son. In wee hours of Tuesday, the woman is said to have left the house with the child. Police claim that the woman first threw the infant into the well and jumped in killing herself. Bodies were fished out by fire and emergency service personnel and shifted to Rasipuram government hospital for post-mortem. A case in this regard has been registered and investigations are underway.

The unfortunate incident comes in the backdrop of dengue claiming 27 lives in Tamil Nadu alone so far. More than 10,000 cases of various fevers have been reported in the state but the government has refused to declare a health emergency. Rs 16 crore has been allocated for mosquito eradication measures but the same has failed to protect citizens from the disease. Awareness programs are being held in village and taluk levels even as municipal corporation workers are carrying out cleaning processes. Despite the efforts, people are continuing to lose their lives to dengue.

OneIndia News