Zhejiang newborn's toilet fall remains hot topic(2)

But during the two hours it took for firefighters and doctors to use pliers and saws to successfully rescue the infant from the U-shaped pipe in which it was stuck, the woman remained silent out of concern she would lose eligibility to keep the baby, according to the police.

The boy, whose placenta was still attached when he was retrieved from the pipe at 6:03 p.m. on Saturday, suffered some cuts to his face and limbs and was put in an incubator at the Pujiang People's Hospital.

Zhang said the police questioning has concluded with evidence supporting the woman's claims, but further investigation will continue.

The case has sparked speculation as well as sympathy on the Internet, with some lamenting lax moral education toward sexual behavior while others have urged legislation to be introduced to better protect minors.

Pictures showing the rescue on China's Twitter-like Sina Weibo have also inspired strangers to visit Pujiang People's Hospital with milk powder, clothes and offers of adoption.

Zhong Qi, associate researcher with the sociology institution at the Zhejiang Academy of Social Sciences (ZASS), said that it is notable from sporadic cases of newborn babies being abandoned or mistreated in China that many young unmarried people lack a sense of responsibility in this regard.

Yang Jianhua, director of the Research Institution of ZASS, said the case exposed weaknesses in public civil education, especially in the attitude toward marriage and bearing a child.

"Society, family and relevant government departments are all to be held accountable for this case," said Yang, adding that the young couple themselves have not truly realized the outcome that might be brought about by their indiscreet affairs.

Yang also suggested that more efforts from communities, family planning departments and education authorities in providing training are required in dealing with potential social issues as more young people migrate from the countryside to seek jobs in cities.