{
  "id": 15890638,
  "title": "A Keralam toddler died hungry. The family’s welfare file had been open since 2022",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/21/a-keralam-toddler-died-hungry-the-familys-welfare-file-had-been-open",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-21T12:58:20.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Indian Express - India",
    "slug": "the-indian-express-india",
    "url": "https://indianexpress.com/article/india/keralam-toddler-starvation-hunger-death-family-welfare-file-10931021/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "On October 18, 2-year-old Rahul died in a government hospital at Harippad in Alappuzha due to starvation-induced anaemia. The postmortem revealed that his stomach was empty and his weight was almost half the normal weight for a toddler of his age. The Keralam Women and Child Welfare Department has announced that Rahul's parents, Rajesh T, an autorickshaw driver, and Thara, will lose custody of their remaining five children, with the eldest being 10 years old and the youngest a newborn. The family's welfare file had been open since 2022 after repeated complaints of neglect. The children, all underweight, will be placed in different care homes and anganwadis while Thara and the newborn will be housed in a state-run women's shelter Mahila Mandiram. The family's dilapidated and disputed property, frequent moves, and lack of proper documentation complicated their access to public services.",
  "summary": null,
  "key_points": [
    "2-year-old Rahul died of starvation-induced anemia in a government hospital.",
    "Parents Rajesh T and Thara to lose custody of four other children.",
    "Case opened in 2022 due to neglect complaints."
  ],
  "editors_take": "The tragic death of a starving toddler exposes how bureaucratic delays and documentation hurdles prevent vulnerable families from accessing the essential public services meant to prevent such preventable neglect.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}