Photos: Conjoined twins who are worshiped by villages say they never want to be separated.

Conjoined twins Shivanath and Shivram Sahu caused quite a stir when they were born in India, with some people in their village worshiping them as divine incarnations.
And while one doctor has said that it would be possible to separate the 12-year-olds, who were born joined at the waist, the duo are determined to remain together.
Shivram said:
 ‘We don't wish to get separated. We will stay like this even when we grow old. We want to live as we are.’
They have stunned doctors with their ability to wash, dress and feed themselves.
A local doctor told the family they were both healthy but he could not separate them.
They are believed to share the same stomach but have independent lungs, hearts and brains.

With practice they have learned to do all their basic daily chores with minimal fuss, including showering, eating, getting dressed and combing each other's hair.
They are able to walk down the stairs of their simple split-level home and even run on all six limbs to play cricket and other games with neighbouring children.
Read more and see more photos after the cut.
Shivanath, who appears to be the weaker of the two twins, said: ‘We have taught ourselves everything. We ride to school on a bicycle and playing cricket is no problem.’
They are also talented academics and considered among the top students at their local school, much to the pride of their doting father, Raj Kumar, 45.The labourer, who is married to Srimati and has five daughters, is very protective of his two sons and will not allow them to leave the village.

He said: ‘For everyone it is good fun to watch my children, but only I understand all the problems they have.
‘During rainy season it becomes difficult for them to walk and when one wants to sit the other has to lie down.
‘But they don't fight. They have similar opinions and if one says he wants to play the other one agrees.’
The father-of-seven says he would not let a doctor separate them, even if he had the money and the operation was viable.