A woman born with 12 fingers and 20 toes has described how neighbours ‘keep away’ from her because they think she’s a witch.
Kumar Nayak, 63, has lived with the abnormality since birth and has never been able to afford treatment.
She says others living in the same town of Ganjam, in the Indian state of Odisha, either ‘keep away’ or give her abuse because of her rare condition.
‘I was born with this defect and I couldn’t be treated as we belonged to a poor family,’ she said.
‘It has been 63 years I have been in the condition I am today. The residents nearby believe that I am a witch and keep away from me.”
Kumar Nayak, 63, from the Ganjam district in Odisha, India, who was born with the defect, has no money to fund her treatment and is forced to stay inside her residence due to her more than usual number of fingers and toes, her feet are reminiscent to that of an elephant.
‘But sometimes more visitors come to see my condition. I am forced to stay indoors as I am treated differently, she said.
However, one sympathetic neighbour added: ‘I know that she has a medical problem and it has nothing to do with what others believe her to be.
‘I feel so sorry for her that she cannot even afford to get herself treated.’
