Delhi: 7-year-old boy’s body recovered from open drain

Police had suspended the rescue operation on Friday night citing the darkness and said they would resume it early Sunday morning

A seven-year-old boy’s body was recovered from an open drain in north-east Delhi on Saturday morning, over 12 hours after he fell into it while trying to catch a kite and drowned, police said. The incident took place in Lakdi Market Puliya in Welcome.

Police have yet to ascertain who maintained the drain. (Representational image)

A senior police officer aware of the matter said that the boy was chasing a kite when he lost balance and slipped into the flowing drain. “A search and rescue operation was launched after the incident but the operation was suspended in the evening when it began to get dark. The operation resumed on Saturday morning and the child’s body was recovered,” the officer said, requesting anonymity.

The victim was identified as Mohammed Adnan, a resident of Loni, and a kindergarden student at a nearby private school.

The Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) and police coordinated the search and the victim’s body was sent to GTB Hospital for an autopsy.

Police said that inquest proceedings have been initiated and further investigation is underway. No case has been registered as the parents have not registered a complaint, the officer said. So far, police have also not been able to identify the agency that maintains the drain.

The latest incident adds to a string of deaths reported in the Capital due to open drains. A three-year-old boy drowned after falling in an open drain in Khajuri Khas of northeast Delhi in March this while a four-year-old boy died similarly in Bharola in northwest Delhi in July.