BHUBANESWAR/BERHAMPUR: It was 2am on Thursday. The whole costal belt was in a state of fear and anxious for the very severe cyclonic storm ‘Titli’. During that difficult hour, a family from a small village was waiting in the Aska community health centre (CHC) in Ganjam district to welcome their baby. When the doctor announced the birth of a baby girl, her parents made up their mind to name her Titli.
Mother of the baby Gitanjali Gouda, 30, of Kalasuta village under Aska police station limits complained of labour pain at around 11pm on Wednesday. Her husband Dillip Gouda, an auto driver, with the help of a village-level health worker, called ambulance and reached Aska CHC by 12am.
“When we boarded the ambulance, the blowing of cyclonic wind had already started. I had fear in my mind that trees may fall on the road and block our movement. My heart was beating fast like the increasing speed of the gale. Finally we reached the hospital,” said Dillip, father of three kids.
Mohan Barik, gynecologist specialist of the Aska CHC, said Gitanjali had a normal delivery. “Both the baby and mother are doing well. The parents wanted to name her Titli. A total of nine babies were delivered during the intervening nights of Wednesday and Thursday and all were girls,” he added.
Similarly, four other families wanted to name their newborn girls after cyclonic storm Titli. A Allemma, 22, of Paradip, gave birth to her twin babies at the sub-divisional hospital at Chhatrapur at 6.05am and 6.12am on Thursday at the time of landfall of Titli.
“I want to name my daughters as Titli,” said Allemma, who made her first delivery during the cyclonic storm that made its landfall at Palasa in Andhra Pradesh.
Another woman Bimla Das, 29, of Palurgada, who delivered a baby girl in the same hospital, wanted to name the baby after the storm. She delivered the baby at about 7am, said Kanhu Charan Patra, sub-divisional medial officer, Chhatrpur. Titli is her third child, he added.
At the Hinjili CHC, at least four babies were born since Wednesday evening. One of them, however, is a girl to Saraswati Sahu, 24, of Gobara area. She was born at about 7am on Thursday. “The staff of the CHC fondly called her Titli and I also want to name her after the cyclonic storm,” said the mother.
Manjari Jena, 21, who delivered a girl at Polsara CHC, wanted to name her daughter as Titli. She was delivered the girl at about 12.55am.
A total of 105 pregnant women were shifted to different hospitals on Wednesday night during evacuation before the storm hit the land. “Out of them, we helped at least 64 pregnant women to safely deliver babies during Wednesday night and Thursday morning,” said chief district medical officer, Ganjam, Sadananda Mishra.
In Jagatsinghpur district, 18 pregnant women were taken to hospitals for their safe delivery and treatment.