In yet another such superstitious tragic incident, an eight-month-old girl child succumbed to injuries at home on Saturday night while her twin brother was admitted to hospital in a critical condition after being branded with hot iron bars in Kandhamal district.
According to reports, the two children, identified as children of Nabin Digal and Bharati of Barakhama village under Baliguda block in the tribals-dominated district, were frequently suffering from loose motion and stomach pain.
Bharati was perturbed following illness of her children and sought suggestion from a woman in the village who advised her to brand the babies with hot iron rod to cure their illnesses.
On Saturday night while Nabin was away for some engagement, the superstition-driven mother branded the twins at over ten places on each of their bodies.
later, they went to bed, but the baby girl did not get up in the morning and was found dead.
However, the baby boy was screaming in pain, following which he was rushed to the Barakhama Community Health Centre (CHC) and later shifted to the Balliguda CHC on Sunday after his health condition deteriorated. Now, the infant’s health condition is stated to be stable.