27-year-old V Loganayaki died in Tamil Nadu’s Krishnagiri district on August 22 after a delivery at home went horribly wrong. An inquiry by the Revenue Department Officer was ordered soon after her death came to light. The couple who are post-graduates in agriculture had learnt about delivering at home through YouTube tutorial videos. The baby boy was first admitted to a private hospital and then brought back to Loganayaki’s maternal home.
The delivery however was botched up and Loganayaki started bleeding heavily. According to the police, she became unconscious and was rushed to a private hospital nearby, but could not be saved. The family told the media that Loganayaki and her husband Madhesh were staunch believers in the natural way of living, which is why they opted for a home delivery.
Though Madhesh and Loganayaki lived in Dharmapuri, they had travelled to her maternal home in the neighbouring Krishnagiri district for the delivery, 10 days ago. While in Dharmapuri, the couple stopped consulting the local government nurse from the Primary Health Centre (PHC) and informed them that they were going to a private hospital. However, it seems Loganayaki had also stopped taking supplements and was told by her husband to use only natural medicines.
During the delivery, Madhesh was unable to cut Loganayaki’s umbilical cord, creating complications. After heavy bleeding, Loganayaki was rushed to the private hospital where she was declared dead. The family brought the body back home and cremated it. The police registered a case after a health worker informed them that this was a home delivery gone wrong.
The Pochampalli police registered a case under section 174(3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Meanwhile, Krishnagiri Revenue Divisional Officer Babu is conducting an inquiry into her death. “If the RDO inquiry suggests so, the husband will be arrested in this case”, a Pochampalli police source has said.
This is however not the first such instance in Tamil Nadu. In 2018, a 28-year-old woman, Krithiga, died from pregnancy-related complications after she allegedly attempted to deliver a baby at her house in Tiruppur. The couple did not believe in modern medicine and refused to go to the hospital for the delivery. They also opted for homebirth after watching related videos on YouTube.