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Three-year-old boy electrocuted in Khandsa
Gurugram: A three-year-old boy was electrocuted to death on Thursday while playing on the rooftop of his house in Khandsa, Sector 37, said the police. According
Gurugram: A three-year-old boy was electrocuted to death on Thursday while playing on the rooftop of his house in Khandsa, Sector 37, said the police. According to the police, the investigation is underway and no case has been registered yet.
The toddler, who was playing with his friends outside the house, gave a slip to his mother and climbed the staircase to rooftop and caught hold of a high tension cable crossing through the rooftop, said the police.
Preet Pal Sangwan, assistant commissioner of police (crime), said that the child came in contact with 1100 KV high-tension cable. “The toddler caught hold of the cables and started swinging on it. Within minutes he was charred to death. The neighbours informed his mother about the incident,” he said.
Neighbours of the deceased said that they have written to the Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHVBN) several times to shift the cables, which are at a close distance and are dangerous for children. But the power discom did not pay any heed to their complaints, the neighbours said.
“The DHVBN officials were demanding a fee of ₹25,000 for installing a pole and shifting the cables. We had refused to pay as it is the responsibility of the department to ensure the safety of the residents,” said Avnish Raghav, a neighbour.
The neighbours also alleged that the high-tension cable was hardly a metre away from the roof as against the mandatory distance of 3.7 metres.
According to eyewitnesses, after coming in contact of the live power cable, the boy was thrown up in the air and fell with his charred body. “The cables are extremely dangerous and frequent sparking takes place. We have multiple times reported it to the officials, but no one has ever visited for any repair and reinstallation,” said Vinod Kumar, another neighbour.
DHBVN’s superintending engineer, Joginder Singh Hooda, said he was not aware of the incident in the area. “I will mark an inquiry into the incident and action will be taken as per the report. I will ask the executive engineer concerned to investigate why the cables were not removed. The report will be reviewed on Saturday,” said Hooda.
ACP Sangwan said the father of the deceased works at a private company in Odisha and will reach the city by Thursday night. The statements of the family members will be recorded on Friday, said the police, adding that the post mortem of the body will be conducted on Friday.
