South India’s first test tube baby, now a mother

Mumbai: 24 years ago at a Chennai hospital, a girl was born through the test tube procedure. Being the first test tube baby of South India, Kamala Rathinam was no less than a miracle for the doctors and the parents.

Rathinam, on Thursday, became a mother to a beautiful girl. And her baby was ushered into the world by the same doctor, Kamala Selvaraj, who gave joy to her parents.

Born in GG Hospital, the new born made everyone emotional and nostalgic as the mother was born at the same hospital through assisted reproductive technology on August 1, 1990.

Also, Kamala Rathinam was named after the doctor who brought her into the world.

Kamala Selvaraj, a well-known obstetrician and gynaecologist, is the daughter of Gemini Ganesan, yesteryear's Tamil superstar.

The doctor, who still had the memory of the birth of the test tube baby, was ecstatic, "It's a top of the world feeling. I thank the almighty for having given me this chance. And I miss my parents and the couple were my father's fans and I miss Kamala Rathinam's mother."

She also mentioned that she cried after the baby was born as if it were her baby.

Over two decades ago, Kamala Rathinam's father V. Ramamurthy, who was an ardent fan of Gemini Ganesan, had come to the doctor as his wife and him had given up hope of having a child. The young doctor had then just returned from Australia after learning the test tube technology.

The father was overwhelmed as he became a grandfather and also mentioned that his wife would have been very happy to see this sight if she were alive.

The baby was delivered through cesarean section and weighs 2.8 kgs.