16-year-old drowns in a pit filled with rainwater in Palghar

A group of teenagers had come to the pit to play as it was filled with rainwater. The boy, while attempting to enter the water, slipped on the banks as the mud was loose

A 16-year-old resident of Shirdi Nagar, Nallasopara (East), drowned in a 20-feet pit dug at Madhuban society, Vasai (East) on Thursday.

The body of the victim, Karan Tiwari, was fished out in the evening. (Photo for representation)

The body of the victim, Karan Tiwari, was fished out in the evening.

A group of eight teenagers had come to the pit to play as it was filled with rainwater. Tiwari did not know swimming. While attempting to enter the water, he slipped on the banks as the mud was loose. One of the friends tried to help him, however, he drowned, and the water had entered his lungs, said a Vasai civic fire brigade official.

“We retrieved the body on Thursday evening and the Vasai police have sent it for post-mortem. A case of accidental death register (ADR) has been filed and we are investigating further,” said a Vasai police officer. A local claimed that the builder is to be blamed for the incident as he had dug the pit for a new building. He had not put a warning board nor appointed a security guard, he said.