A migrant labourer woman from Maharashtra recently gave birth to her 17th baby in Belagavi, Karnataka, but the infant did not survive, a health official said on Tuesday.
Walki Bai, a farm labourer from Maharashtra had come to Belagavi district along with her family to cut sugarcane a month ago. She is a member of the nomadic Gabali community and a resident of Majalgaon tehsil of Beed district.
Thousands of men and women from Beed migrate to other parts of Maharashtra and to Karnataka for work during the harvest season. “We have learnt that Lankabai gave birth to her 17th child, a girl, who died soon afterwards,” Beed health officer Dr. R.B. Pawar said.
She has 11 children, nine of them girls. She had three abortions and lost five children.
Deputy commissioner S. B Bommanahalli has asked district health and family welfare officer Sadashiv Munyal to identify the woman and provide her with necessary care. He also asked the health department to identify the family and the village they are residing in currently.
(With inputs from PTI)
