Newborn abandoned in cold, survives night under protection of stray dogs in Bengal
PTC News Desk: Just before dawn, while most of the river-side town in West Bengal’s Nadia district was still asleep in the winter cold, a newborn was found abandoned outside a bathroom in a railway workers’ colony.
The baby, only a few hours old and still smeared with birth blood, lay on the cold ground with no blanket, no note, and no adult nearby. But the baby was not completely unprotected. In what locals are calling nothing short of a miracle, a group of stray dogs surrounded the infant in a tight circle, silently guarding through the night. Residents say the dogs prevented anyone or anything from going near until morning.
When a woman named Sukla softly approached, the dogs slowly moved aside, allowing her to pick up the child. She wrapped the newborn in her dupatta and called neighbours for help.
"Waking up, we saw something that still gives us goosebumps," said Sukla Mondal, a resident who was among the first to spot the baby. "The dogs were not aggressive. They looked alert. As if they understood the child was fighting to live," she said.
Another resident, Subhash Pal, recalled hearing the short, sharp cry around dawn.
"I thought some family had a sick baby. Never imagined a newborn was lying outside, with dogs watching over. They behaved like sentries," he said.
The infant was taken to Maheshganj Hospital and later shifted to Krishnanagar Sadar Hospital. Doctors confirmed the baby had no injuries and said the blood was likely from birth, suggesting the child was abandoned just minutes after delivery.
Police believe someone from the local area may have left the baby there under cover of darkness. Nabadwip police and Child Welfare authorities have begun an investigation and have started the process for the infant’s long-term care.
Even as officials proceed with the case, the town remains moved by the sight of the street dogs—often shooed away—standing guard protectively.
“These are the same dogs we complain about,” said a railway worker. “But they showed more humanity than the person who abandoned that child.”
- With inputs from agencies
