The child nicknamed "Mowgli girl" who was assumed to be raised by monkeys after being discovered in a forest in Northern India is exhibiting evidences of being raised by humans.
"It’s not possible that a girl could spend years in the forest, and no staff member or hundreds of cameras installed for security and animal census noticed her," regional officer Gyan Praksh Singh said in a statement.
Indian authorities now believe the girl, who appears to have severe mental and physical disabilities, may have been abandoned by her guardians, reports The Independent.
Dr DK Singh, the chief medical officer of the hospital where she has been receiving treatment told The Guardian: "In India, people sometimes do not prefer a female child, and she is not mentally sound, so all the more [evidence] she was left there."
The girl who was unable to speak or walk, and preferred comfortably crawling around with monkeys was reportedly discovered by forest rangers, who claimed she was living with monkeys in a nature reserve in Uttar Pradesh.
According to the doctors the girl has learned to walk standing upright and has been eating solid food since being admitted to hospital,
Doctors are saying the rapid improvement in her condition is indicating she was raised by humans rather than monkeys.
Dr Singh said: "She is still not able to speak, but understands whatever you tell her and even smiles."
Forestry officers have since said it would have been impossible for the girl to go undiscovered for so many years in a forest which is regularly patrolled.
One forest ranger was quoted by The Associated Press saying they were chased away by monkeys when they approached to rescue the girl.
Villagers first spotted her in January foraging in Motipur range of Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary close to the Nepal border, reports the Hindustan Times.
Police are searching for the child’s family members, but so far no one has come forward.
Thursday, June 04, 2026
