Call me Siddhesh
MID-DAY (Sept 2001)
By Skimmy Gupta
I GOT A NAME: Siddhesh, the baby who was abandoned and is now in the care of Shraddhanand Ashram
Two days after being abandoned, the three-day-old boy found on the roadside by Rizvi Complex, Goregaon (East), on Wednesday, has been given a name by Shraddhanand Ashram, Matunga. The baby with a cleft palate, which finally got refuge there after four hospitals rejected him admission, has been named Siddhesh, which means fame and fortune.
" Naming is the first thing we do when a child comes to us. The baby is so handsome. Even with the cleft palate, he is beautiful. How could his mother abandon him?" asks the secretary of the ashram.
When this correspondent visited the ashram, Siddhesh was being fed his afternoon meal at the ashram's Special Care Centre. Soon after, the infant slept.
The superintendent of the ashram said, " Siddhesh is fit. He is fair, has a sweet round nose and weighs 1.6 kg. He is responding well to bottle feeding. It has become routine for women to abandon their children. At an average we receive four such children every month. Some parents abandon their children after six months, when they have grown used to their mother's presence."
She further added, " Like other boys, Siddhesh will remain with us for six years. If till then nobody comes forward to adopt him, he will be sent to another home."
When asked when were they planning to have the baby's deformity treated, the secretary said, " That's the next immediate step. As soon as the doctor feels the time is right and when the juvenile court grants permission, we will definitely operate. We will try to find a sponsor for the surgery. If not we can collect sufficient funds."
The secretary added that no one had come forward to claim the baby. " Now, if the real mother or anybody else is interested in claiming him, they will have to go through our exhaustive six-month legal procedure. He can be claimed only after proper verification and assurance. Or else we can very well take care of Siddhesh," the secretary said.
None of the ashram authorities wanted to be named.
MID-DAY (Sept 2001)
By Skimmy Gupta
I GOT A NAME: Siddhesh, the baby who was abandoned and is now in the care of Shraddhanand Ashram
Two days after being abandoned, the three-day-old boy found on the roadside by Rizvi Complex, Goregaon (East), on Wednesday, has been given a name by Shraddhanand Ashram, Matunga. The baby with a cleft palate, which finally got refuge there after four hospitals rejected him admission, has been named Siddhesh, which means fame and fortune.
" Naming is the first thing we do when a child comes to us. The baby is so handsome. Even with the cleft palate, he is beautiful. How could his mother abandon him?" asks the secretary of the ashram.
When this correspondent visited the ashram, Siddhesh was being fed his afternoon meal at the ashram's Special Care Centre. Soon after, the infant slept.
The superintendent of the ashram said, " Siddhesh is fit. He is fair, has a sweet round nose and weighs 1.6 kg. He is responding well to bottle feeding. It has become routine for women to abandon their children. At an average we receive four such children every month. Some parents abandon their children after six months, when they have grown used to their mother's presence."
She further added, " Like other boys, Siddhesh will remain with us for six years. If till then nobody comes forward to adopt him, he will be sent to another home."
When asked when were they planning to have the baby's deformity treated, the secretary said, " That's the next immediate step. As soon as the doctor feels the time is right and when the juvenile court grants permission, we will definitely operate. We will try to find a sponsor for the surgery. If not we can collect sufficient funds."
The secretary added that no one had come forward to claim the baby. " Now, if the real mother or anybody else is interested in claiming him, they will have to go through our exhaustive six-month legal procedure. He can be claimed only after proper verification and assurance. Or else we can very well take care of Siddhesh," the secretary said.
None of the ashram authorities wanted to be named.
Labels: City
posted by Skimmy @ January 12, 2009
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