Boy dies after falling into open pit in Lucknow park, probe ordered
The mishap occurred inside a park in Gayatripuram area of Shankarpurwa ward-2 under Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) Zone-7.
In an incident highlighting glaring civic negligence, an around six-year-old boy died after falling into an open pit of a sewage treatment plant (STP) that is nearing completion under the Gudamba police station limits on Monday.
The incident took place around 6.30 pm, according to a Lucknow Municipal Corporation press release. The mishap occurred inside a park in Gayatripuram area of Shankarpurwa ward-2 under Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) Zone-7.
Announcing financial aid and shelter for the family, Lucknow Municipal Corporation ordered a probe to prevent such incidents, the press release stated.
The child, son of daily wage labourers from Bihar, slipped while playing with his brother near the 0.5 MLD STP. His family had taken shelter in the park after a dispute with their landlord on Sunday.
The boy climbed over a 4-foot -high railing and fell into the uncovered pit, according to eyewitnesses.
“While the parents left for work on Monday, the child began playing and climbed over the railing, falling into the pit,” an official said.
“One of the child’s acquaintances reported the incident, following which police were informed. It took nearly an hour to rescue the child and rush him to hospital.”
Fire officials pulled the child out and took him to the Gudamba community health centre (CHC) and later he was moved to the Civil Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.
The incident has once again highlighted the LMC’s failure to implement repeated administrative directives to cover open pits, secure under-construction zones and ensure regular monitoring of civic projects. Local residents demanded accountability and strict action against officials responsible for the lapse.
Locals claimed the pit was part of a civic project recently taken up under the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT).
Fire station officer, Bakshi Ka Talab, Prashant Kumar said they received the information at 6:41pm about a child falling into a pit in a park near Unity City Square under the Gudamba police station.
“On receiving the information, an ambulance, a vehicle from Bakshi Talab fire station and a fire tanker from Indira Nagar left for the spot. Even before (the vehicles) reached the spot, the child was taken out of the STP plant located in the park with the help of local people and civil police and taken to CHC Gudamba,” the FSO said.
Speaking to Hindustan Times, local corporator Shivam Upadhyay blamed LMC engineers for negligence.
“The railing was not enough to prevent accidents. The pit should have been properly barricaded or covered. This is criminal negligence. Had basic safety protocols been followed, this incident could have been avoided,” the corporator said.
A senior LMC official said the STP was not yet operational and that only 90% of the work had been completed.
“The remaining 10% of the construction is still pending, and the site has not been handed over to the concerned department,” the official said.
LMC’s Zone-7 incharge Akash Kumar said he reached the site immediately after receiving the information. “Additional municipal commissioner Lalit Kumar and LMC chief engineer Mahesh Verma were also on their way to inspect the site,” he said.
Another senior LMC official, requesting anonymity, said the STP project began during the tenure of a former minister.
“The park, where the STP is located, has remained unfinished and closed to the public since then,” the official added.
Despite repeated attempts, additional municipal commissioner Lalit Kumar could not be reached for comment.
