Where babies always come in pairs

Vibha Sharma

There is a village in Kerala which is so amazingly fertile that not just its lands are bountiful but also its people.

Kodinhi, a virtual island surrounded by water bodies and wetlands in its hinterlands, has more sets of twins than anywhere else in the country.

Situated in Muslim–dominated Malapuram district, it is enroute between the coastal town of Kozhikode and Kottakal, the city famous for Ayurvedic medicines and treatments.

Otherwise, Kodinhi is like most villages in Kerala, though quite unlike those in other parts of the country. Clean, lush green, dotted with big swanky houses, flush with “Gulf” money, the concept of MNREGA falls short here. It also has its very own Twins and Kin Association (TAKA), a body to register and provide support to its twins citizens.

Alavi Pattasseri, father of twins Hamnath Alavi and Nusrath Alavi and a TAKA member, says the twin’ phenomenon in Kodinhi is many times, at least five to six times, more than the global average. “It is certainly the highest in India. There are more than 273 pairs in the village alone. The oldest are around 78 years’ old,” says Alavi.

Daughter Hamnath, a homeopathic doctor by profession, is one of the twins, and a “twins’ enthusiast”. She keeps surfing the internet and reading on the issue and would like to be part of some serious “government-initiated” scientific study on Kodinhi’s curious phenomenon.

“Most of the twins are girls’ pairs and the number of twins is increasing every year. I think it has something to do with the environment here, some geographically-linked phenomenon. A couple from outside who came and settled here also got twins,” she says, recalling the instance of a teacher who migrated to Kodinhi and was blessed with twin children.

Hamnath can count four pairs of twins in her immediate family. “I also see more number of twin-bananas and twin-coconuts here in Kodinhi. There is definitely something here that helps increase fertility, in hyper-ovulation. I am told that almost 20 per cent of the new generation in Kerala is suffering from reproductive issues. Perhaps, unravelling the mystery of Kodinhi can help them and others,” Dr Hamnath says.

As per Alavi, the phenomenon was first noticed around six decades back when surveys were carried out under the family planning programmes in the state. “It was noticed that almost every family in Kodinhi had a history of twins,” he says.

Ahead of the village is a small primary school — The AMLP School, Kadavallur, for Classes I to IV.

Headmaster Abdul Samad has been a part of the institution for almost 24 years now. And he does not recall any year when there were not at least six to seven pairs of twins in the school.

“One year we even had 10 pairs. This year the school has seven pairs. But one pair is absent today because one of the twins is not well. It is always like this with the twins, if one is not well, both will be on leave,” he laughs.

A dermatologist working as public health consultant in the nearby Chemmad town for the past 17 years, Dr Sribiju MK is also a “twin enthusiast”. As per Sribiju, he has been researching the Kodinhi’s unusual phenomenon for a decade now. His research has been largely informal and secondary in nature. “I like doing research on Kodinhi’ twins because it is a fascinating issue, one which if researched properly, with scientific methodology and biochemical means, may yield a breakthrough in human reproductive science. It needs a proper, in-depth scientific study,” he says.

A survey conducted by him in the region, around three-four years, he found 256 pairs of twins. The number, he says, could be higher maybe 300 or more, as Kodinhi on an average gets 10 to 15 pairs of twins every year. Also many may have been left. Plus the number is also increasing every year.

Like Hamnath, Sribiju also senses something special about Kodinhi, something that makes it as interesting a place as Cândido Godói in Brazil which has 1,000 per cent higher than global average twin’ rate. “In India, there are two other villages where similar trends have been noticed - Umri near Allahabad and Kadavaloor, a hour’s drive from here in Kodinhi. But their numbers do not match this place. “The common thread is that they are all in Muslim-dominated,” observes Sribiju

But the community-related attribute does not cut ice with Alavi who counts several Hindu families with twin’ births. This apart, Sribiju also feels the Kodinghi phenomenon has something to do with its environment, perhaps water or what lands here produces and villagers eat.

“One of the causes of infertility is ovaries not being able to release the ovum. Perhaps there is something here that helps stimulate the ovaries,” he adds.

Remember, Kodinhi is a virtual island, encased by wetlands and water bodies, setting it apart from its surroundings. Genetic factors, Sribiju believes, could not be the only reason. Complete outsiders to Kodinhi have come here and have had twins.

The best part is all twins are all healthy, born without any deformities. “Twinning can be a health hazard for both the woman and her children. We had checked all the twins with the help of paediatricians and found no deformities,” he says. Meaning that whatever is there in the land, water or air of Kodinhi is not harmful.

“Asians have a relatively low rate of twin births, 11 per 1000 live births and Africans, particularly Nigerians, have the highest — 40 per 1,000 births. Japanese have the lowest rate of 1.3 per 1000 live birth. It has been observed that when Japanese women go to Nigeria their fertility increases.

“Also, the higher rate in some parts, particularly in the Western countries, may be because of artificial insemination as mostly older, mature women give birth to twins, Here in Kodinhi, this is not the case.

“There are many reasons for twinning which is why Kodinhi’s uniqueness calls for a proper scientific probe. It is almost as if something mysterious is hidden in the atmosphere. Perhaps it can be used by pharmaceutical companies and doctors to help people dealing with infertility as currently only the affluent can afford the treatment,” says Sribiju.