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8-year-old falls into water-filled rly pit in Raichur, dies: Police
An eight-year-old boy drowned after slipping into a water filled pit dug for a railway construction project in Karnataka’s Raichur district on Sunday, police said
An eight-year-old boy drowned after slipping into a water filled pit dug for a railway construction project in Karnataka’s Raichur district on Sunday, police said.
The child had accompanied his parents to their agricultural land near Kapagal village in Manvi taluk when he wandered off while playing. His parents later found him in a pit, about 9 to 10 feet deep, that had been excavated for a railway column and had filled with water, according to the police.
“An incident occurred near Kapagal village in Manvi taluk at around 10.30 am on Sunday. After some time, when the parents realised their son was missing, they searched the surrounding area,” Manvi Police Inspector Somashekar Kencha Reddy told HT.
“The parents found the boy in a water filled pit dug by the Railway Department at Survey No. 223, adjacent to their land. They pulled him out and rushed him to Lakshmi Hospital, Manvi. Doctors declared him dead. His body was later shifted to the government hospital mortuary,” he said.
The child’s family has accused the railway authorities, the contractor and engineers of failing to secure the excavation site. Based on a complaint filed by the boy’s father, Manvi police have registered crime no. section 106(1) (culpable homicide) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and begun an investigation.
“The boy’s father filed a complaint alleging negligence on the part of the railway authorities, the contractor and the engineers. They stated that adequate safety precautions were not taken during the railway construction work, leading to the accident. Based on the complaint, we are investigating the matter and will take appropriate action,” Kencha Reddy said.
Manvi MLA G Hampayya Nayak said action would be taken against those responsible for the construction work. “Instructions have been issued to the concerned authorities, and action will be taken against the contractor and the engineer responsible. Compensation will also be provided by the government to the deceased child’s family,” he said.
The incident has also drawn attention to safety measures at railway construction sites across the district. “Similar unsecured pits have been dug at several railway construction sites across the district, but proper safety arrangements have not been been made,” social activist Shivkumar Kamthane Sindol said.
He said many railway works run alongside agricultural fields, exposing farmers and children to danger, and urged the government to introduce safeguards and cancel the licences of contractors and engineers found negligent.
Raichur Deputy Commissioner Poovitha S said an inquiry was already underway and that district authorities had recently instructed railway officials to strengthen safety measures. “An FIR has already been filed regarding the incident and an investigation is currently underway. Regarding the railway project, instructions were given to the railway authorities last week to put up fencing and notices about the works being carried out. After the investigation, based on the report, compensation will be provided to the family by the government,” she said.
