5-yr-old girl drowns in Mumbai pool, family alleges lifeguard wasn’t around

Instructors, lifeguards being probed for negligence after 5-year-old drowned in Babha Atomic Research Centre complex

After initially lodging an accidental death report in the case of a five-year-old drowning in a swimming pool in the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) complex, the Trombay police said on Saturday that they would register a case of negligence.

Anushka Kumar, the victim, had gone for swimming classes and was later found motionless in the pool. (HT Photo)

Anushka Kumar, five, had gone for swimming classes at 3:30 pm on Friday and had been swimming in the adult pool, whose depth starts at 4.5 feet.

At around 4pm, she was found lying motionless in the pool. After being pulled out, she was rushed to a nearby hospital where she was declared dead on arrival. A post-mortem has been conducted.

“We are investigating the swimming instructors and the lifeguards who had the onus of ensuring the safety of the children,” said a police officer privy to the investigation.

He said the police were in the process of registering a case under Section 304(2) (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Indian Penal Code.

A post-mortem was conducted, however, the cause of death has been reserved and the viscera have been preserved for further chemical analysis, said the officer.

Anushka’s father Niraj Kumar, who works as a scientific officer with BARC, said that there were two swimming coaches deployed for the task, including a female coach. Kumar said that his elder daughter, who is 12-years-old, had also gone swimming and 10 to 15 other children from her school were also present at the pool.

He said the lifeguards, however, only reached the spot after his daughter had drowned.