AJMER: Yet another infant, this time a two-month-old baby boy, has fallen victim to superstitions in Bhilwara , which is infamous for cases of babies being branded with hot iron rods to cure them of pneumonia Dinesh was branded on his chest with a hot iron rod by a tantrik on Saturday evening. The baby was suffering from bad cold and his parents, residents of Bhilo Ki Basti in Kachola block of the district, were about to take him to the local primary health clinic when their neighbours advised them to go to the tantrik.The baby's father, Nathulal Kalbaliya , said the condition of the baby worsened in the night following his branding. They then took him to Bhilwara's Mahatma Gandhi Hospital where he died during treatment on Sunday morning.Dinesh was the third baby to have been referred to the district hospital after branding in the last two months.Last year, several such babies were referred to the hospital and more than 15 had died due to branding in Bhilwara, Chittorgarh and Rajsamand.The police handed over Dinesh’s body to his parents after conducting a postmortem.District Woman and Child Welfare Committee chairperson Suman Trivedi demanded immediate arrest of the tantrik and the parents. “The situation is really bad in the district. The committee had initiated a campaign against such superstitious practices but still tribals and people living in remote rural regions continue to practise them. Stringent action is most necessary to bring about a change,” she said.

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