MORIGAON, India – A blue tarp covered a mother and her newborn daughter from the incessant rain during their boat trip. Jahanara Khatoon, 25, had just given birth on the boat on the way to a health center, surrounded by the raging waters of the Brahmaputra River.
“I am very happy,” said her husband, Kamaluddin, who was also on the boat. “My wife wanted a boy, but Allah gave me a girl and I am very pleased. I don’t want to have any more children.”
The couple left their home on Phuliamari Char, one of the islands in the river, after it was inundated by floods, taking refuge on a nearby island known as Chars.
Increased rainfall in the region, attributed to climate change, has made the Brahmaputra River – already known for its powerful and unpredictable flow – even more dangerous for those living near it or on the more than 2,000 islands that make up it.
India, and the state of Assam in particular, is seen as one of the world’s most vulnerable regions to climate change due to increasingly intense rains and floods, according to a report 2021 Report by the Energy, Environment and Water Council, a New Delhi-based climate think tank.
Khatoon and Kamaluddin earn a living as farmers on their island in Morigaon district in the state of Assam.
A medical team was visiting flooded Chars to help those who needed medical help, especially pregnant women. The team convinced Khatoon to travel with them to the nearest medical center across the river.
The baby couldn’t wait for Khatoon to arrive at the health center. As labor progressed, the boat crew quickly got to work, holding a tarp to protect them from the rain as they helped with the delivery.
Within 10 minutes, the baby emerged with cries of celebration.
Diluwara Begum, assistant nurse and midwife, lifted the newborn and whispered prayers in his ears.
“This was the first time I helped deliver a baby on a boat. It was a very different feeling. That’s good.” she said.
The family named the baby Karima, which means “Give”.
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