Baby hatch in China closed after parents dumped 262 unwanted kids

[Dem!god]

china has recently decided to expand the number of baby
hatches by seeing the rising demand....

BEIJING: Authorities in a southern Chinese city were forced to close down a baby hatch after parents "overwhelmed" by dumping 262 babies in a few weeks.

The government-run baby hatch program allows parents to leave behind unwanted babies without identifying themselves.

The hatch, which opened in Guangzhou city in January end, received an average of five babies a day showing that large number parents are eagerly waiting to get rid of their babies.

The official Xinhua news agency quoted local officials saying the facility's "rooms, beds, quarantine facilities as well as working staff are facing a shortfall due to the overwhelming baby figures."

Officials said the closure of the baby hatch was a temporary measure and it will be reopened once all the abandoned babies, many of whom are sick, receive proper treatment.

China recently decided to expand the number of baby hatches in view of the rising demand. At present, there are 25 hatches established since 2011. The number will be gradually increased to 75, officials said.

The temperate-controlled hatches allow parents to abandon babies after ringing a bell. Medical staff retrieve the children five to 10 minutes later. It is meant to provide immediate, life-saving care to children who likely would be abandoned anyway.

But critics say baby hatches could encourage parents to abandon their children. The hatches conflict with Chinese law, which disallows abandoning a child. But the government is establishing additional hatches because decades-old one-child policy that has created a higher demand for boys than for girls.

Baby hatch in China closed after parents dumped 262 unwanted kids - The Times of India