Child falls in open drain, none take rap

Trapped in a dark dirt-filled drain, all Apoorv could think of was reaching out to his mother. The six-year-old fell in an uncovered drain on July 19 in Patparganj. He sustained severe head and leg injuries that needed 24 stitches.

Trapped in a dark dirt-filled drain, all Apoorv could think of was reaching out to his mother. The six-year-old fell in an uncovered drain on July 19 in Patparganj. He sustained severe head and leg injuries that needed 24 stitches.

HT Image

"Water kept going inside my mouth and I couldn't call out," said Apoorv, a Class II student. "Finally two men pulled me out."

His mother, Archana Sharma, said the police refused to register a complaint for such a "petty" incident. The police agreed to register a complaint only after HT spoke to them.

Sharma also complained to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, but nothing was done. The MCD claimed to have covered the drain on Thursday, but when HT visited the site, the drain was still uncovered.