Barely a few days after a female baby died due to septicemia and shock after she was pierced with searing hot needles around her navel, her private parts, below her rib cage and chest, village elders of Mudippinayankanpalayam, about 20 km from Krishnagiri in north Tamil Nadu, imposed a Rs 1,000 fine on members of the local self help groups (SHG).

The katta panchayat or kangaroo court which provides rough and ready justice, took offence to the SHG members ‘sneaking’ to the district authorities about the age-old practice of piercing a newborn with hot needles.

District Collector Santosh Babu, who visited the village on Saturday, threatened to book the villagers under charges of infanticide if they did not give up the barbaric custom.

On December 7, the newborn baby was brought to the Krishnagiri hospital in a critical condition. The baby, born to 25-year-old Neela from Mudippinayakanpalayam village, had burn marks on her body, and died a day later.

According to the doctors, preliminary findings indicated that the baby could have died due to septicemia and shock.

The cruel custom of piercing the newborn is practised in several villages across Krishnagiri, considered the most backward district in the state. It is believed that piercing the babies with hot needles would result in better bowel movement, said P Ganesha Murthy, UNICEF consultant working in Krishnagiri.

The local dhais or midwives undertook the task soon after helping mothers to deliver a child for a fee of about Rs 100.

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