Not Y2K babies, just God's gift

By Rasheed Kappan

BANGALORE, JAN. 1. For the newborns at the Ghousia and the CSI hospitals in Bangalore, it was not an artificial tryst with the millennium fortune. There were no forced caesarian operations, no designer babies to bring a Y2K smile on their parents' faces. ``God's Gift,'' they declared in unison, as if to send a message to the masters of astrology-dictated pregnancies.

Catching a glimpse of her first son, Ms. Velangani smiled in her Ghousia hospital ward. Wife of a plumber in Wilson Garden, she had not heard of the Y2K, never thought of the millennium. ``But I knew it was the beginning of a new year, and was happy for my son.'' She had heard people telling her she was lucky. But she had not bothered to ask why.

In another bed, not far away from hers, young Ms. Rubaida Khatum was with her fifth child. A boy for her, a millennium kid for the world. Neither she nor her husband, a leather merchant, Mr. Mohammad Mukarif, had ever heard of the new millennium. ``It is nothing great,'' she simply said. Born barely four hours after the midnight stroke, the infant boy slept peacefully.

The three new faces at the Church of South India hospital brought cheers to their parents. But it was not a millennium cheer. For Ms. Tahseen Sultana, her second child had come two days early. ``The date given was January 3. I was of course aware of the hype. But that was least in my mind,'' she said. The baby was born in a natural delivery at 11 a.m.

Sultana's husband, Mr. Afsar Pasha, an airport employee, had heard his colleagues congratulating him on his luck. ``All my relatives told me I was lucky,'' he said. ``I am happy that God chose to bring the child this day, two days before the scheduled date.''

The hype around the millennium baby had begun to work on Mr. Afsar. He was happy for his child, but sorry for his sister, Ms. Shadmana. ``She delivered her baby two days back, on December 30. She just missed it,'' he said with a laugh. But Mr. Afsar would support no forced caesarian operations, not even if it meant a good birthday to remember for the child.

For many, the millennium hype was an elitist fad, a sensation worked on mere arithmetic of time. Nevertheless, Ms. Hema missed the midnight stroke and the perfect Y2K baby by 58 minutes. Her daughter was born at 12.58 at the St. Martha's Hospital. The hospital had no more millennium births before dusk fell.

But a few minutes before the sunset on the millennium day, the Uma-Srikanth couple had a reason to smile. The time 6.15 p.m., the place: Shankarambal Nursing Home. Their first child would now have a reason to stand out in a crowd, years ahead. If it would make a difference to be called a Y2K baby later, the parents had left their son to decide.

The Y2K planners were of course there too. Inspired by the global hype generated by the Y2K baby bug, Mr. Suresh and his wife, Ms. Leena Kumari, had decided in advance. At the H.A.L. Hospital, the couple's baby was delivered at 10.15 a.m. Children of the new millennium born naturally at the CSI Hospital in Bangalore.

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