Toddler dies of starvation, mother buries her on hill top in Vizag

Visakhapatnam: The case of an 18-month-old missing girl, K. Gnanasa, ended in tragedy after her body was found on Katamayya Hill under Pendurthi police station limits in Vizag city. She had starved to death. Her mother Kusumalatha, who had also been missing, reportedly buried the girl's body on the hill a couple of days ago.

It may be recalled that Kusumalatha and her daughter went missing from their home on 6 February following a heated argument between Kusumalatha and her in-laws in the Pendurthi area in Vizag city. Kusumalatha’s husband K. Appa Rao, an employee with the Indian Railways, along with others lodged a complaint at Pendurthi police station on 7 February.

On 10 February, Kusumalatha was found sick near the Chinamushidiwada area in Vizag city. The locals offered her food and first-aid treatment and later, alerted the Pendurthi police. Inspector of Pendurthi police station Suryanarayana said Kusumalatha claimed that she, along with her daughter, stayed four days in a forest area. She also claimed that her daughter died of starvation on 9 February and that she buried her body near a snake-pit.

"Based on her information, our teams began a search to trace the girl's body. Finally, our teams retrieved her body on Wednesday afternoon," said Mr Satyanarayana.

Gnanasa's death has raised doubts about Kusumalatha's story. The police have seized a mobile phone from her for further investigation to ascertain what caused the girl's death. The police took her body to K.G hospital for autopsy. A case has been registered under Section 174 of the CrPC (suspicious death).