How Old?! Indian Woman In Her 70s Becomes First-Time Mother

Daljinder Kaur became one of the world’s oldest mums when she gave birth to her first child in her seventies last month.

And not content with a natural birth, Daljinder has also decided to breastfeed her son Arman Singh, who was born on April 19, 2016 without any complications.

Daljinder and her husband, 79-year-old Mohinder Singh, live in Amritsar in the Indian state of Punjab.

The pair have been married for 47 years – but only decided to seek fertility treatment in September of 2014 following the end of a bitter family feud.

Father Mohinder Singh, who was born in Pakistan in 1941, said: “We are very happy that we have been blessed with a son as we had been trying for a baby since we got married.”

“Due to a family feud we never focussed on our dream to become parents, but in September 2014, my wife gave me an ultimatum and said she would go the National Fertility and Test Tube Baby Centre in Hisar, Haryana, independently if I did not accompany her.”

This is the second case at the Hisar National Fertility and Test Tube Baby Centre where a woman in her seventies has delivered successfully following IVF.

In 2006, 70-year old Rajo Devi gave birth to a baby girl from the same Centre, making her the world’s oldest mother at the time.

Meanwhile, an ecstatic Daljinder Kaur has been celebrating Arman’s birth for the last month.
She said, “We cannot thank God and our doctor enough for blessing us with a baby.”

The idea for IVF was planted in Daljinder’s head in 2006 when she saw an advertisement for IVF treatment in a Punjabi newspaper.

After pestering her husband for eight years, in 2014 she finally gave him an ultimatum - to visit the IVF centre in Hisar with her or else she would go there by herself.

She said, “I reached the IVF Centre at Hisar in September 2014 and met a lady doctor who refused point blank, stating I was too old to become a mum.

“I was crushed, but I am an optimist at heart and wanted to at least give it a chance, despite the huge monetary cost, hence I insisted and pestered the doctor at the clinic to give my case a chance as I really wanted to become a mother.”

A relative from the husband’s side of the family suggested the couple not to “waste” the 1 million rupees (£10,000) to become parents at such an old age and instead adopt a needy child and give it a new lease at life.

But asked if she had ever considered adoption, Baljinder said: “I never wanted to adopt a child as I was unsure if I would be able to love it like my own, hence I was keen to give birth to a baby myself.”

But, Daljinder was hell bent to become a mother, finally convincing her doctor, Aunrag Bishnoi - however he insisted that the couple would have to visit them regularly each time they were called and not request to switch dates as they lived all the way in Amritsar, Punjab.

A determined Daljinder was happy that Dr Bishnoi had given her a chance and happily agreed to his demand.

The mum said: “At one point the doctor told me that he had never met a woman more stubborn than me who was clearly wasting her money on the treatment, but I think my stubbornness and persistence paid off as I am a mother today.”

The septuagenarian mum is breastfeeding Arman - and is determined to keep on doing so for as long as she can, rather than feed him formula.

The mum confounded doctors' concerns she that she might struggle to generate sufficient milk, adding: “The milk flow isn’t erratic considering my age.”

Despite her joy at being a new parent, Daljinder remains concerned she may not be around to see Arman grow up.

She said: “I was worried that I’d die by the time my son grows up, but Dr Bishnoi asked me to be positive and instead concentrate on educating and giving Arman a bright future.”

The couple want to provide the best of everything to their son - although have no plans to try for a second child.

Daljinder said: “I think I’d die if I try for another kid and wouldn’t be able to enjoy my precious Arman.”

Embryologist Dr Anurag Bishnoi, who runs National Fertility and Test Tube Baby Centre, was “initially sceptical” about putting Daljinder through IVF, but went ahead after tests showed the mum to be healthy and fit enough to carry a child.

He said: “I first tried to avoid the case because she was very weak in the beginning. But then her medical reports were normal and she was fit to conceive.

“Daljinder’s optimism and persistence held her in good stead and that helped her defy all odds to become a mum.”