A Catholic nun working in poor communities called for an investigation into the reported sale of young children, especially infants, in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.
Carmelite nun Manju Devarapalli, secretary of the National Dalit Christian Watch, described the report as “rather unfortunate,” adding that poverty alone is not the reason of the “racket.”
A report on The Hindu newspaper on April 6 described how supposedly poor mothers sell infants, citing two cases in the first week of April.
“Earlier, we have seen cases of childless couples resorting to illegal adoptions and purchasing babies,” the news report quoted a child protection officer as saying.
“But now infants are put up for sale in the market by some gangs in the state,” he said.
Sister Devarapalli, a lawyer in the city of Vijayawada, said the government should study the problem thoroughly and find ways to end it.
She said the report could only be “the tip” of a rampant malaise prevalent across India.
Read full story on Matters India
