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6-year-old drowns at water park, owner among others booked
Police book the owner, manager and supervisor of a water park in Ravet for their alleged failure to provide safety and security measures, leading to the drowning of a six-year-old girl at the pool
Pune: The police have booked the owner, manager and supervisor of a water park in Ravet for their alleged failure to provide adequate safety and security measures, leading to the drowning of a six-year-old girl at the park’s swimming pool, officials said on Thursday.
The arrested have been identified as Rahul Aba More of Mhaske Vasti in Ravet, who works as a manager; Sagar Bhagwan Kale of Shelke Vasti in Haveli, who works as a supervisor, and the owner of the water park. According to the police, the water park administration has been directed to produce documents to get the identity of the owner.
The incident took place on Monday afternoon when the water park was bustling with visitors out on summer vacation. The victim, identified as Shahira Yakubali Mulla, was visiting the park with her family, including her mother Shamshad, brother Aayan 15, and Rayan 16.
According to the police, the Mulla family is from Kalewadi area of Pimpri-Chinchwad and the victim’s father runs a workshop in the locality.
Heeding to the demand of their three children to go to the water park during summer vacation, the Mulla family visited the popular spot except the victim’s father. The family of four had lunch at the facility and later Aayan and Rayan entered the pool, while Shahira and their mother watched them from sitting area.
According to the police, at around 2 pm Shahira demanded ice cream and her mother went to buy it.
Kakasaheb Dole, deputy commissioner of police, Zone 2, said, “She found her daughter missing after her return and frantically started a search. The minor was later found in the pool and the staff performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to revive her and rushed her to a nearby hospital where she was declared dead on arrival.”
According to Dole, the water park owner and others have been booked for not taking precautionary measures at the pool like not deploying lifeguards, not providing life jackets, and no proper railing.
Dole said that as no CCTV cameras were installed at the area to cover the pool, it is difficult to find out the cause of the incident that took at the crowded place.
Shivaji Gaware, senior inspector, Ravet police station, said, “It is the responsibility of swimming tank owners/staffers to put up signage boards mentioning the depth of water at specific locations.”
Officials said that after the alert was sounded, authorities rushed to the scene and took steps to save the girl. Shahira was declared dead on arrival by doctors at Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Hospital in Pimpri-Chinchwad.
Preliminary inquiries revealed lapses in safety and security measures at the water park. The police have registered a case at Ravet police station under Sections 304 (a) and 34 of the IPC.
