'No Trace Of Food In Intestine': 5-Year-Old In Tamil Nadu Suspected To Have Died Of Starvation​

An unidentified five-year-old boy in Chennai was found dead on a push-cart on the Villupuram-Chennai national highway on December 15. The post-mortem done at the Government Villupuram Medical College suggests that the child was not killed since there was no trace of injuries on his body. However, there was no food in his stomach, indicating death due to starvation or dehydration. As reported by The Hindu, a senior police officer said,

"An autopsy at the Government Villupuram Medical College and Hospital revealed that the child had died of natural causes. The stomach was empty, and he could have died of either dehydration or hunger."

Tamil Nadu Police formed four special teams to discover the boy's identity. The police officers circulated the boy's photos among Whatsapp groups involving teachers and Anganwadi workers. They also checked the CCTV footage near the area of the incident but was unable to find out any details, the report further added.

The Push-Cart Owner Explains

According to a report by ABP News, Sivaguru, the owner of the push-cart shop, had been running the business for more than twenty years. He used to park the vehicle on the side of the road after closing down, and he did the same before going home on Saturday before the incident happened. On Sunday, he returned to work to witness the child's lifeless body. With the help of other people, he tried to wake up the child, but he was lying motionless.

Children Dying From Hunger

As reported by UNICEF in 2018, a child under 15 dies every five seconds worldwide, and approximately 3.1 million children die from undernutrition each year. The malnutrition rate among India's children is almost five times more than in China and double that in Sub-Saharan Africa, reports Daily Pioneer, citing a World Bank Report.

In August 2020, a five-year-old girl named Sonia was said to have died of hunger in Agra. During Covid-19 lockdown in March 2020, an eight-year-old boy in Bhojpur district starved to death. He was a ragpicker while his father was a porter. Two of them couldn't find a source of income due to the imposition of lockdown, and there was no ration at home.

Article 32 of the Indian Constitution makes the Right to Food a guaranteed Fundamental Right. Yet, the number of human beings dying from hunger is not low. Central and State governments should take adequate actions to ensure that their citizens do not die of hunger.

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