5-year-old suspected to have died of starvation in Tamil Nadu

His body was found near Villupuram.

Image for representation.

The report on the post-mortem on the body of a five-year-old boy, who was found dead on a push-cart on the Villupuram-Chennai national highway on December 15, has revealed that he might have died of dehydration or hunger.

His identity is yet to be ascertained. The body was found near a pharmacy and sent to the government hospital for post-mortem.

The police have registered a case of unnatural death.

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,” he said, quoting doctors.

Teams formed

The district police have formed four teams to identify the child and trace his relatives.

“We have circulated the boy’s photos among WhatsApp groups of teachers and anganwadi workers across the State. The police also went through the footage from the CCTV cameras in the vicinity, but nothing conclusive has emerged,” the officer said.

(Childline operates a toll-free helpline for children in distress-1098)