3 month old baby dies after healer pokes her with hot rod to treat Pneumonia

In a shocking incident, a 3 month old baby girl, suffering from pneumonia, was poked with a hot rod 51 times as part of a “treatment” in Madhya Pradesh. The infant, who had trouble breathing, succumbed to her misery 15 days later at a hospital.

The incident took place in a tribal-dominated area in the Shahdol district.

The baby’s body, which has been buried, will be taken out for postmortem on Saturday, said the officials.

Shahdol Collector Vandana Vaidh said, “When the women and child development officials reached the hospital, they found that the shocking case of blind faith took place 15 days ago and the child was not treated for pneumonia which deteriorated her condition.”

“A local Anganwadi worker counseled her mother and requested her not to poke the child with a hot rod,” the Collector added.

Notably, the practice of poking with a hot iron rod to “treat” pneumonia is common in many tribal-dominated areas of Madhya Pradesh.

According to Dr. Vikrant Bhuria, doctor and President of Youth Congress, being poked with bars can lead to death, it will only subside the pain for some time, but the problem is that the infection can supersede which can result in death.

BJP spokesperson Dr. Hitesh Vajpayee said that such practices are still prevalent. He further requested the Chief Medical Officer of the area to register a complaint and take strict action against such practices.