World Scene: India

Woman sells baby to pay bill

A single mother sold her newborn son to a childless couple for 6,000 rupees ($120) so she could pay her medical bill, a media report said yesterday.

Rajitha, 20, delivered the baby last week in Kothagudem in the state of Andhra Pradesh, but could not afford the Rs 2,000 ($40) hospital fee, the NDTV news channel reported. A rickshaw driver friend gave her Rs 6,000 for the baby, which he planned to raise with his wife. The couple have no children.