Thiruvananthapuram, Aug. 17 -- It was on the eve of Christmas in 2002. G Sasidharan, then a novice programme officer with the Kerala State Council for Child Welfare (KSCCW), remembers the day like it was only yesterday. Around 1:30 am, when most of Thiruvananthapuram had drifted off to sleep, a siren rang in the nursing station inside the KSCCW, then nestled in a small building on Gandhi Bhavan Road, he said. It was a watershed moment - a baby had been 'received' at the 'Ammathottil' (mother cradle) facility in front of the building.

Within two minutes, caregivers and security officials at KSCCW rushed towards the cradle, scooped up a few days-old baby girl and proceeded to give her urgent medical care. Sasidharan, who had gone home, rus...