Boatman in India praised for rescuing baby girl floating in a box on the Ganges

A boatman in India has been praised after he rescued a baby girl found floating in a wooden box in the Ganges river.

The infant was found in a wooden box decorated with images of Hindu deities. Police said the box had a birth horoscope card which had the time and date of the baby's birth, and mentioned her name as Ganga - the Hindi name for river Ganges.

Boatman Gullu Chaudhary said he was alerted by the cries of the 21-day-old and found her wrapped in a red scarf in the box decorated with images of Hindu deities.

The state government said it would bear the costs of the baby's nurturing. Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath announced that the boatman would be rewarded with government benefits, including a house, for showing a "matchless example of humanity".

Indian police said Thursday (17) they have launched an investigation into the incident.

The baby has been taken to hospital and her health is being monitored. She will be sent to a shelter home later, reported the BBC.

"It is difficult to ascertain how long she had been floating in the river. The boatman heard a sound coming from the box and that's how he found the baby," local police official O P  Singh told AFP.

"The baby is fine and is currently receiving medical attention. The government will take care of everything. We are trying to figure out where she came from."

Officials in Ghazipur district, where the baby was rescued, told reporters that district magistrate MP Singh had checked on the baby and that officials were also sent to meet the boatman, the BBC report added.