Head constable S. Ilavarasi and constable V. Santhi helped a homeless pregnant woman deliver a baby girl near the South police station in Vellore in the early hours of Saturday.
Ms. Ilavarasi was going to the police station to report for her night sentry duty around 2.15 a.m. when she heard a loud noise nearby.
Along with Ms. Santhi, she went to investigate, and they found a pregnant homeless woman, K. Shabana, 30, crying in pain. They noticed that she was going into labour. By this time, sub-inspector N. Padmanaban, who was on patrol duty, joined them and called for an ambulance. However, before the vehicle could arrive, the woman gave birth to a baby girl. The police personnel admitted the mother and newborn to the Government Pentland Hospital.
“I was nervous as this was the first time I had faced such a situation. Everything happened so fast. In the end, the mother and child were safe,” said Ms. Ilavarasi, also a mother of two.
Inquiries revealed that Ms. Shabana and her son had been living on the streets of the fort town for the past few years after they migrated from the neighbouring Chittoor district in Andhra Pradesh. She had been doing odd jobs to survive.
Appreciating the constables and the sub-inspector for their timely aid, Vellore Superintendent of Police S. Rajesh Kannan said the team had reacted quickly and wasted no time in helping the pregnant women. Later, the police team ensured that the mother and the child were safe. “It’s heartening to see that both the parent and the child are safe,” Mr. Kannan said.
