1-Month-Old Branded With Hot Iron 40 Times: You Will Be Surprised To Know What It Means

Many cultural and traditional practices in India have been discontinued over time due to their inhumane nature. Unfortunately, some of these practices continue to persist, owing to the superstitions and baseless beliefs surrounding them. Branding is one such practice, two cases of which have been recently reported from Nabarangpur, Odisha. Read to know more. 

Two children from Nabarangpur were hospitalized after being subjected to the painful practice of branding. What is even more shocking is that the younger one was just 1 month old and had more than 40 marks of branding on his tiny body. The other one is a six-year-old girl from Nakti Simda Village. 

What Is Branding?

Branding is a traditional practice in which a hot metallic object, like iron rods or chains, is used to inflict 3rd-degree burns, marks, or symbols on the bodies of small children in an attempt to treat various diseases or conditions. While the practice is quite uncommon now, recent cases have led to significant concern, especially because both children have sustained severe burn injuries. 

The baby had reportedly been suffering from fever and cold for a couple of days. When his condition did not improve even after being taken to the hospital, his parents took him to a traditional healer who allegedly branded him more than 40 times over a span of four days. The baby sustained severe burn injuries following which he was admitted to the hospital. 

In the second case, the six-year-old was suffering from cold, fever and stomach ache for a long time and was branded nearly 30 times to cure these. Unfortunately, her condition deteriorated and she had to be hospitalized as well

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History Of Branding 

Branding is an age-old concept dating back to the 12th century. While it was used as a punishment in America, Europe, Rome, and Britain during the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries, certain communities from India adopted it as a religious practice. There were a large number of cases of neonatal branding reported in 1991 in some rural areas of India, primarily for treating conditions like convulsions, seizures, and jaundice. 

There are also reports of deaths related to branding, yet it is being practiced maybe due to the lack of proper medical care or maybe owing to superstitions. Do you condemn this inhuman practice? Let us know in the comments. 

Source:

https://indianpediatrics.net/feb2015/feb-164-165.htm 

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4862791/