Three-year-old drowns in NE Delhi drain

Police registered a case under Section 106 (causing death by negligence) of the BNS and are questioning local authorities about it

New Delhi

The spot of the incident. (HT)

A three-year-old boy died, allegedly by drowning in an open drain in Khajuri Khas, northeast Delhi, on Friday afternoon while he was playing outside his house, police said.

Police said they received a call from locals at 1.39pm and sent a team for rescue, but the boy was declared dead at a hospital. They identified the deceased as Vishwajeet Kumar.

“We received a call about a child drowning. A team was immediately sent to the spot at Gali No. 22, Khajuri Khas. The team found a three-year-old boy drowned in the open drain while playing outside. He was immediately rescued and sent to JPC Hospital, but the doctors declared him ‘brought dead’,” deputy commissioner of police (northeast) Ashish Kumar Mishra said.

Police registered a case under Section 106 (causing death by negligence) of the BNS and are questioning local authorities about it. The boy is survived by an elder sister and parents, they said.

Local sources indicated that the drain was owned by the irrigation and flood department. However, the department officials did not comment on the issue when contacted by HT.

Drain deaths in Delhi, especially drowning in uncovered drains, have been a cause for concern across Delhi, due to a multiplicity of agencies and unclear jurisdictions. Although most such incidents are reported during monsoon, the boy’s family said this drain was uncovered for many years.

Ramvilas Kumar, the boy’s father, was inconsolable.

Standing outside the police station, he said, “I left for work and wasn’t even home. I received a call later form my brother who told me my boy died; I was shocked. The drain is walking distance from our home. It’s been lying open for years and nobody has covered it. It’s filled with animal carcasses and garbage. I can’t believe this happened. I was told that Vishwa was playing with his sister when he slipped. He was my only son. My son was innocent. What was his fault?”

Kumar works as a peon at a private office in south Delhi and his wife is a homemaker, police said.

The father said that residents of the area complained to multiple agencies about the open drain, but it fell on deaf ears. “We want action against the local authorities who oversee the drain and its upkeep,” Kumar said.

The family said the boy’s sister, Barkha Kumari, last saw the boy on a toy bike outside their home. Upon later finding the toy near the drain, she informed her mother, who called for neighbours’ help.