Yet another suspected incident of female foeticide has come to the fore in Orissa with the local police here recovering glass and plastic jars containing the remains of unborn children. The jars were seized from the forest park area, a posh locality of the capital city.

“We seized fourteen jars on Tuesday night which had been thrown into a bush. A detailed investigation is on”, the city Superintendent of Police (SP), Amitabh Thakur told Deccan Herald on Wednesday adding that two employees of a nearby diagnostic centre had been detained for questioning.

This development has assumed significance in view of a similar incident that occurred in Nayagarh district a few days back where a large number of body parts of unborn children and female foetuses were recovered from a dry well used by a private nursing home as a dumping yard.

Two doctors held

The crime branch of the state police that was handed over the Nayagarh incident, has already arrested two doctors as well as the manager and owner of a Nayagarh based private nursing home, in connection with the case.

“More doctors are expected to be arrested in the case very soon”, a source in the crime branch said.
The health and family welfare department has also launched a statewide drive to identify illegally run private nursing homes and diagnostic centres for their possible involvement in these female foeticide cases.

Clinics sealed

A number of such clinics have already been sealed. Meanwhile, the Congress led opposition has launched a statewide agitation demanding the resignation of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and the Health Minister Duryadhan Majhi over the female foeticide incidents, as well as another incident related to the recent discovery of a fake medicine factory in western Bolangir district.