14-year-old girl injured after lamp post falls on her head during BMC demolition drive

A 14-year-old girl in Mumbai was seriously injured when a street lamp fell on her after an excavator driver lost control of the vehicle during a demolition drive.

MUMBAI: A 14-year-old girl suffered severe injuries to her head after a street lamp fell on her when an excavator driver lost control over the vehicle involved in a civic demolition drive and crashed into an electricity pole at Juhu’s SV Road on Tuesday afternoon.

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Juhu police officials said the incident occurred at 1.35pm when the girl, Kaynaat Poonawala, was returning home at Ruia Nagar from school.

Officials said that at SV Road near the Bajiprabhu Corner at Vile Parle, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation was carrying out the demolition of roadside stalls.

Hussain Poonawal, Kaaynat’s father, said that he was at home when he received a call from Juhu police that his daughter had met with an accident and was rushed to Cooper Hospital. “I went to the hospital and found out that my daughter had been taken for surgery,” said Poonawala.

Eyewitness Manish Mhatre told the police that he was on his motorcycle when he saw a few BMC officers carrying out a demolition opposite the Lexus Showroom on SV Road at Vile Parle. The eyewitness also saw that a JCB was being used by BMC officials for the demolition. “It was 1.35pm when the JCB driver crashed into the electric pole causing the bulb and its iron cover to fall on the girl’s head who was walking under it,” said Mhatre.

The Juhu police have booked the JCB driver under section 337 (causing hurt to a person by doing any act so rashly or negligently as to endanger human life, or the personal safety of others) of the Indian Penal Code.

“We are recording the statements of the BMC officers and eyewitnesses to find out whether the accident was caused due to negligence of the driver,” said a police officer from Juhu police station.