FIR against power dept officials after girl loses arm in cable-snapping incident in Ghaziabad

Ghaziabad: The family of an 11-year-old girl, who lost her arm after she came in contact with a snapped electricity cable in New Arya Nagar, has filed a complaint against the officials of the electricity department

Ghaziabad: The family of an 11-year-old girl, who lost her arm after she came in contact with a snapped electricity cable in New Arya Nagar, has filed a complaint against the officials of the electricity department. We have registered an FIR against a superintending engineer, an executive engineer and a lineman of the area, late Thursday night, police said.

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The girl, a class 4 student at a government school in Nandgram, was going to a temple to offer prayers on February 15, when the girl came in contact with a snapped electricity cable and suffered severe burn injuries. She was admitted to a hospital in Delhi.

“Doctors amputated her right arm from her shoulder, and thumb of her right foot following two major surgeries. She has also suffered burns to her abdomen and thighs. My daughter is bed ridden and may not be able to attend the school. Our entire family is shattered following the incident. We are trying hard to meet the daily medical expenses... For her treatment, we have to take her to the Delhi hospital twice in a week,” said her father Nandu.

He purchases cardboard boxes and sells those in local markets.

“We got delayed in filing a police complaint as we were busy regarding my daughter’s treatment, and frequently travelled between Delhi and Ghaziabad. The police have registered an FIR,” Nandu added.

The victim is the third one among her six sisters and has two other brothers.

Krishna Gopal Sharma, SHO, Sihani Gate police station, said that the FIR was registered under IPC Section 338 (causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others). “An investigation is underway,” Sharma said.

The officials of the Paschimanchal Vidyut Vitaran Nigam Limited (PVVNL) called the incident “unfortunate”. “We have started an inquiry in the case, and a compensation process for the victim has been initiated. It will be based on an inquiry, and the chief medical officer (CMO) will submit a report on the physical condition of the girl... We are trying our best to replace the old cables. We have converted the majority of electricity cables to aerial bundled cables for safety. In Ghaziabad, the coverage of conversion in urban areas is about 98%, and about 50% in rural areas,” said Pankaj, chief engineer, PVVNL.