Seoul saw 220 unwanted Korean infants abandoned in a church baby box this year as of December, amid a steadily rising number of abandoned babies since the baby box was first created in 2009.

The baby box is a drop box operated by a church in Gwanak-gu, Seoul, for desperate mothers to leave their babies.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, 220 infants were found in the baby box in Seoul this year, which accounts for 96.4 percent of the 228 infants discarded across Seoul in 2014.

This is also 77.1 percent of the national total, as babies have increasingly been left in Seoul over the period.

The number of abandoned babies in Seoul reached a record high in 2013 with 239 infants, triple figure of 2012. Seoul saw 43 abandoned infants in 2011 and 20 in 2010.

Experts say many of the infants who would have been left outside orphanages in the past are now put into the baby box, due partly to mothers thinking that the baby box is a safer place to leave them, as it is sheltered and constantly supervised.

But some, such as Professor Noh Hye-ryun of Soongsil University, say that some mothers may abuse the baby box as a simple way to give up their babies without meeting their legal obligations.

State-run measures to help the biological parents to nurture their babies should be the priority, she said.

The baby box was first created in December 2009 by a pastor Lee Jong-rak in a bid to provide an alternative for mothers who abandon their children. A box was installed in the side of the church building in Gwanak-gu.

According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, a total number of infants abandoned in Korea stood at 285 in 2013. This is about 30 percent higher than 191 in 2010.

This also means that, since the introduction of the baby box, the proportion of abandoned babies who were left in Seoul has risen from 10.4 percent in 2010 to 80 percent last year.

By Kim Da-sol, Intern reporter (dasolkim@heraldcorp.com)