Births and deaths are prohibited on Norway’s Svalbard island near the North Pole. This rule is due to lack of hospital and dead bodies not thawing in the cold. Due to the 1920 treaty, people from 50+ countries can live here without a visa.
Unique village: This is a very strange and unique village. Its name is Svalbard. Svalbard is an island group of Norway, about 1,300 kilometers from the North Pole. You do not need a visa to go here. But anyone will be surprised to hear about this village, because here both giving birth and dying of a child are prohibited by law. The climate in Svalbard is very harsh. The weather here changes every moment. Apart from this, polar bears can be seen here at any time. Travel influencer Radhika Nomlers, who recently visited this island, has shared surprising things about this place on social media.
According to him, both birth and death are prohibited in this village located at the northernmost point of the world. This is because there is no hospital here, hence there is no facility for delivery. At the same time, if someone dies, it is not the body’s fault because of the extreme cold. For this reason there is no arrangement to bury anyone here.
Svalbard has 24 hours of darkness during winter and 24 hours of light in summer. Some months the sun is not visible at all, and some months the sun does not set at all. A ‘Doomsday Vault’ has also been built in this area, so that humanity can be saved in times of difficulties like natural disaster, war or climate change. It is also being used to preserve the agricultural diversity of mankind. The grain seeds have been kept very safe here.
Another special thing about this island is that people from more than 50 countries live here without visa. The reason for this is the Svalbard Treaty of 1920. According to this treaty, a citizen of any country can live and work here. India is also one of the countries that has signed this treaty.
No army, no visa required
There is no official immigration process of any kind in Svalbard. If one can earn his living and finds work, he can settle here. At present about 2,500 to 3,000 people live here, but there are more polar bears here than humans. Cats are completely banned here to protect the delicate Arctic bird species.
There is no army here and there are very few cases of crime. It is common here for people not to lock their doors and leave their bicycles outside. However, when going out of town it is necessary to carry a rifle because of the danger of polar bears.
The main reason for restrictions on deaths and births in Svalbard is the snowfall here all the time. Due to this, dead bodies are not able to decompose properly, which can cause health problems. In view of this, the system of burial here has now been stopped. Seriously ill or elderly people have to leave the island.
There is no old age home here. Also, the lack of better medical facilities forces pregnant women to travel to mainland Norway prematurely for delivery. For this reason, Svalbard is said to be a place made only for youth, workers and those who have the courage to face difficult situations. This village situated in the corner of the world attracts attention with its strange rules, but this very specialty makes Svalbard a special place.