In Khammam a Dalit woman Rajitha sold her one-day-old baby for Rs 6,000.
The 20-year-old had no money to either pay the fee demanded at the government hospital where she gave birth nor was she confident that she can earn and look after her baby boy.
She gave birth to the baby boy last week. It was a c-section and the staff at the Kothagudem government hospital in Andhra Pradesh reportedly demanded that she pay Rs 2,200. So this single mother gave away her one-day-old baby for Rs 6,000 to a childless couple.
"I sold the baby for 6000 rupees because my financial position is really bad," she said.
Action is now being initiated against the doctor and hospital staff.
"Buying and selling a baby is an offence, so we will be booking cases," said Revenue Division Officer Rajaram.
District ICDS officials want the baby to be united with the mother so she can breastfeed him. The mother and child will be shifted to a state home and the mother will then decide if she wants to put the baby up for adoption.
Today Sussex Police and the local council's children services said they have investigated the case and pledged continued support for the young parents.
Britain’s youngest known father is Sean Stewart. He became a dad at 12 when the girl next door, 15-year-old Emma Webster, gave birth in Sharnbrook, Bedford, in 1998. They split six months later.
PM Gordon Brown refused to comment directly on the story but said it was important that the Government did all it could to prevent teenage pregnancies.Alfie’s dad Dennis yesterday told how the lad does not really understand the enormity of his situation — but seemed desperate to be a devoted and responsible father.He wanted to be the first to hold Maisie after the hospital birth. He tenderly kisses the baby and gives her a bottle.
And Dennis, 45, said: “He could have shrugged his shoulders and sat at home on his Playstation. But he has been at the hospital every day.”
Maisie was conceived after Chantelle and Alfie — just 12 at the time — had a single night of unprotected sex.They found out about the baby when Chantelle was 12 weeks pregnant.But they kept it a secret until six weeks later when Chantelle’s mum Penny, 38, became suspicious about her weight gain and confronted her.
After that Alfie’s family told only those closest to them for fear he would be “demonised” at school.Chantelle gave birth to Maisie on Monday night after a five-hour labour at Eastbourne Hospital, East Sussex.
Last night she told The Sun: “I’m tired after the birth. I was nervous after going into labour but otherwise I was quite excited.”
Chantelle told how she discovered she was expecting after going to her GP with “really bad” stomach pains. She said: “Me and Alfie went. The doctor asked me whether we had sex. I said yes and he said I should do a pregnancy test. He did the test and said I was pregnant. I started crying and didn’t know what to do.“He said I should tell my mum but I was too scared.“We didn’t think we would need help from our parents. You don’t really think about that when you find out you are pregnant. You just think your parents will kill you.”
But Penny figured out what was going on after buying Chantelle a T-shirt which revealed her swelling tum.
Chantelle admitted she and Alfie — who are both being supported by their parents — would be accused of being grossly irresponsible. She said: “We know we made a mistake but I wouldn’t change it now. We will be good loving parents.
“I have started a church course and I am going to do work experience helping other young mums.“I’ll be a great mum and Alfie will be a great dad.”
Chantelle and Maisie were released from hospital yesterday. They are living with Penny, Chantelle’s jobless dad Steve, 43, and her five brothers in a rented council house in Eastbourne. The family live on benefits. Alfie, who lives on an estate across town with mum Nicola, 43, spends most of his time at the Steadmans’ house.
He is allowed to stay overnight and even has a school uniform there so he can go straight to his classes in the morning.Alfie’s dad, who is separated from Nicola, believes the lad is scared deep down.
He said: “Everyone is telling him things and it’s going round in his head. It hasn’t really dawned on him. He hasn’t got a clue of what the baby means and can’t explain how he feels. All he knows is mum and dad will help.
“When you mention money his eyes look away. And she is reliant on her mum and dad. It’s crazy. They have no idea what lies ahead.”Dennis, who works for a vehicle recovery firm, described Alfie as “a typical 13-year-old boy”.
He said: “He loves computer games, boxing and Manchester United.” Dennis, who has fathered nine kids, told how he was “gobsmacked” when he discovered Alfie was to be a dad, too..
He said: “When I spoke to him he started crying. He said it was the first time he’d had sex, that he didn’t know what he was doing and of the complications that could come. “I will talk to him again and it will be the birds and the bees talk. Some may say it’s too late but he needs to understand so there is not another baby.”
Chantelle’s mum said: “I told her it was lovely to have the baby but I wish it was in different circumstances. We have five children already so it’s a big financial responsibility. But we are a family and will pull together and get through. “She’s my daughter. I love her and she will want for nothing.”
Last night Michaela Aston, of the anti-abortion Christian charity LIFE, said: “We commend these teenagers for their courage in bringing their child into the world.
“At the same time this is symptomatic of the over-sexualisation of our youngsters and shows the policy of value-free sex education just isn’t working.”
INNOCENT-eyed Alfie Patten spent his first night acting as a 13-year-old dad and declared: “It was easier than I thought.” The four-footer — who looks no more than eight — said: “I know I’m young, but I plan to be a good dad.”
As he went on the PlayStation with 15-year-old girlfriend Chantelle Steadman, he added: “I think we’ll be good parents. I’ll have to work extra hard at school.”
DOCTOR Carol Cooper, The Sun’s GP, explains the physical changes in lads and when they occur. BOYS can actually get a girl pregnant at the age of six or seven — though it is extremely rare. Puberty starts for most boys at 12. Hormonal changes occur first and then sperm starts to mature — though it is unlikely at this stage that many would be capable of impregnating a girl. The growth spurt, voice changes plus facial hair are secondary to hormonal changes and come later.
Alfie, who is just 4ft tall, added: “When my mum found out, I thought I was going to get in trouble. We wanted to have the baby but were worried how people would react.
“I didn’t know what it would be like to be a dad. I will be good, though, and care for it.”
Alfie's story, broken exclusively by The Sun today has sparked a huge political storm with Tory leader David Cameron saying: "When I saw these pictures this morning, I just thought how worrying that in Britain today children are having children.
"I hope that somehow these children grow up into responsible parents but the truth is parenthood is just not something they should be thinking about right now."
He told how he and Chantelle, 15, decided against an abortion after discovering she was pregnant.The shy lad, whose voice has not yet broken, said: “I thought it would be good to have a baby.
“I didn’t think about how we would afford it. I don’t really get pocket money. My dad sometimes gives me £10.”
New & Hot News : "DNA tests show 'boy dad' not the actual father"
LONDON 30th March 2009 : DNA tests on Alfie Patten, the 13-year-old boy who was alleged to have become a father when he was just 12, show that he is not the baby girl’s actual dad.
The £300 test was conducted on him after half a dozen boys claimed to have slept with schoolgirl pal Chantelle Stedman, 15.
Although Alfie was convinced he was the dad after a single night of unprotected sex with Chantelle, the DNA test proved the 4ft-tall pupil was not the father of her tot Maisie Roxanne.
According to the Mirror, Chantelle had told her half-sister Jodie O’Neill, 17, that her daughter’s father could have been one of the boys she slept with at her parents’ home in East Sussex.
The paper further reveals that the teen girl also said that her mother Penny had ordered her to keep saying that she has been a virgin when she slept with Alfie.
The result will be a blow to Alfie who was “devastated” by the boys’ claims and “adored” Maisie. Chantelle became pregnant aged 14 after she “forgot to take” her contraceptive pill last May.
If you look at this picture in front of you, you're probably saying to yourself, 'Awww, cute kids.' Well, the truth is, these kids are much, much older than they appear. That's right, these kids that probably don't look a day over five years old are 16 and 18 years old, respectively. I know. I was fooled too. Azad Singh and Laxmi Yadav may be young adults now, but the reason why they look like this is because they never went through the process that every young adult goes through in the evolution towards maturity: puberty. While not having to put with acne, voice fluctuation, and menstrual cycles might seem like a cool thing, the side effect is that they don't physically mature. Both kids aren't much taller than 3 feet. That's crazy. The siblings from Haryana, India are just kids who love cricket and want to do things regular kids do. They go to school, good grades, and have ambitions to go into fields such as engineering in Azad's case. Their condition makes it hard for them to enjoy certain freedoms that they would love to have, such as just being able to walk the streets alone. Azad and Laxmi have a disorder that prevents their hormones from growing and developing, a condition that became apparent after they were five years old each. The hormones cost about £18 daily, but the family, who lives a modest life financially, cannot afford the potentially life-altering hormones. Their younger sister, Sonam, 12, did not have this disorder and is of normal height. Sometimes Sonam accompanies them outside to protect them from insults from others. "When I go out, such as to walk to my tutor's house, my mum has to come with me," Azad said in an interview with Britain's The Sun. "People think I'm still a kid and need looking after." "When we were younger our parents had to change our school because the other kids laughed at us because of our size," Laxmi said. Last year, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi wanted to provide free treatment for the brother and sister, but Azad and Laxmi wound up feeling as if they were exhibits and not human beings and opted to decline the opportunity. But when the Azad and Laxmi arrived at the hospital, crowds of patients, visitors, and even people from the street went into to the ward to stare at them. "We could not face all those people," Laxmi said. "It was too frightening for Azad and me. We felt we would rather stay as we were than go through that. We decided we did not want the treatment, as doctors said there was only about a 40 to 50 per cent chance it would work." It's at least good to see that the disorder isn't affecting their spirits. They seem like good people that just want to be known by who they are rather than how old they look. I definitely wish them all the best. Tell us your thoughts on this story. Are you surprised at how two teens can look so young? Let us know what you think!
