The body of a newborn female infant was found in a drainage channel in front of the Government Rajaji Hospital (GRH) here on Tuesday.
Enquiries by the police revealed it was the stillborn baby of Panjali (21) of Manjolai in Rajapalayam in Virudhunagar district, who had been admitted to the GRH.
The police said that the woman had given birth to the baby onboard ‘108’ ambulance on the way to the GRH on the night of May 19.
On arrival, the mother was admitted to the hospital, while the GRH authorities had handed over the body of the baby to the mother and the grandfather of Panjali.
The 70-year-old man and her daughter had gone to the drainage channel and buried it there.
“Coming from a distant place, they did not know about the channel but buried the body there. However, the body emerged from the ground when the sewage swelled in the morning,” said Inspector of Police (Tallakulam) V. Mohan. Passers-by noticed the body and informed the police.
