The parents of a 2.5-day-old infant girl from Dehradun have donated her body to a medical college for studies, potentially making her the youngest body donor in India.

The baby, born on December 8, experienced severe breathing difficulties shortly after birth and was placed in an incubator. She also suffered from hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), a type of brain damage, and the doctors could not save her.

After her death, the parents, Ram Mehar Kashyap and his wife Nancy, residents of Haridwar, made the profound decision to donate their daughter’s body to Doon Medical College in Dehradun with the assistance of an NGO, Dadhichi Dehdaan Samiti.

This marks the first instance of a body donation involving such a young child, noted Dr Geeta Jain, Principal of Doon Medical College.

The parents were inspired by the guidance of their family doctor, Jitendra Saini. Ram Mehar Kashyap shared that Dr Saini explained the significance of the gesture, saying, “If you perform the last rites, the memory of your child may fade over time. But by donating her body, not only will you always remember her, but others will also honour her memory.”

Moved by these words, Ram Mehar discussed the idea with his wife and family. After considering everyone’s opinions, they collectively decided to proceed with the donation.

Ram Mehar and Nancy already have a daughter named Rudraksh, who is two and a half years old.

Dr Mahendra Narayan Pant, head of the Anatomy Department at Doon Medical College, called it an “unprecedented” incident, saying “no one had donated a body at such a young age”.

He added that when they received a call from Dadhichi Dehdaan Samiti, the hospital discussed the matter in depth before accepting the body of the girl, whom they named ‘Saraswati’.

Until now, only individuals above 45 years of age had donated their bodies to Doon Medical College. The donation of the body of this 2.5-day-old girl has created history, Dr Pant said.

The infant’s body will be used for medical studies by students at the college.