LONDON: Britain's first baby of 2017 is an Indian-origin girl, who came into the world at 12.01 am, just a minute into the New Year. Bharti Devi, 35, gave birth to the 6 pounds, 8 ounce baby girl Ellina Kumari at City Hospital in Birmingham, just seconds after Big Ben stopped chiming.
Speaking from her hospital bed, Bharti, a housewife, told the Sun, "She is doing well and is healthy. I was five days overdue so we expected her to be born in 2016 but the longer the labour went on I thought it might go into 2017."
Bharti Devi also has a two-year-old son Ariv Kumar with sales assistant husband Ashwani Kumar.
"We did not really get the chance to celebrate the New Year at midnight because I was just about to give birth. It is really exciting to think she is the first baby born in Britain in 2017, it is definitely something special to tell her when she is grown up," she added.
The new father said he is an "extremely proud dad". "Bharti and Ellina both being healthy is the main thing. But it is incredible to think she is the first baby of the whole year. New Year will be extra special from now on," he said.
The new mother and baby were looked after by midwife Zulekha Samsodien, who described the birth as "special".
"It is special that she is the first baby of 2017 anywhere in the country, it is something to be proud of. We've had a couple of deliveries since as well which is really nice," she said.