Illegal sex determination at Palacode Govt Hospital, 2 arrested
Accused Arrested
Dharmapuri: Illegal sex determination of foetuses at Palacode government hospital has led to the arrest of two individuals from Andhra Pradesh, while three others remain absconding. One hospital staff member implicated in aiding the suspects has been terminated.
According to recent media reports, the arrested individuals are aged 41 and 26. The absconding suspects include a 41-year-old from Hanumanthapuram near Palacode, a 35-year-old health visitor from Pennagaram, and another unidentified person.
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Speaking to TNIE, a health department official said, "A sanitary worker at Palacode government hospital, informed the hospital’s medical officer, Dr C Balasubramaniyam (42) in the first week of November that some miscreants were allegedly using the scan room in the hospital. Balasubramaniyam checked CCTV footage from October 25 to November 11, and found that on October 30, two suspects and three others were illegally using the scan machine to check the sex of the fetuses.”
Following this discovery, the Joint Director of Health Services in Dharmapuri conducted a decoy operation. While two of the suspects were traced near Hanumanthapuram, they managed to escape. Investigations revealed that a hospital staff member, who had been working there for a year, assisted the suspects. The group reportedly charged Rs 15,000 per scan, sharing the proceeds among themselves.
Based on the complaint filed by Dr. Balasubramaniyam at the Palacode police station, cases have been registered against the five accused under sections 49, 323 (3), 334 (2), 115 (2) of the BNS Act and section 23 (1) and 25 of the Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques ( Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act.
Authorities noted that one of the arrested individuals had a prior history of arrests for similar offences earlier this year in Andhra Pradesh and Tiruvannamalai district.
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Officials from the Tamil Nadu National Health Mission, including Director Dr. A. Arun Thamburaj, Dr. Meenakshi Sundari from the Directorate of Medical and Rural Health Services, and the Joint Director of the PCPNDT Act, stated that they were previously unaware of the issue.
