Delhi boy falls into sewer, triggers 24-hour search — CCTV uncovers unexpected twist
Police reached out to his family, and that’s when the full story emerged — 24 hours after he ‘disappeared’
3 min read
The child had managed to ‘roll’ out of a broken area in the sewer, about 20 metres away from the opening he fell into. He then walked back home and went about life as usual (Representative image/File)On Thursday afternoon, a seven-year-old boy was reported missing in South Delhi’s Vasant Kunj. He was last seen by children from a nearby school — dressed in a pair of shorts and running across a road with his friend in Rajokri village.
Police were alerted at 1.24 pm. “The children told us he fell into the sewer while playing in the rain and hadn’t been seen since,” a police officer said.
A hectic search operation ensued.
Several personnel — from the Vasant Kunj South police station, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), and even MCD sanitation workers — searched for the boy till the early hours of Friday. An earthmover was even brought in to dig up the sewer to no avail.
While the rescue operation continued, police decided to look at CCTV cameras in the area for clues. Footage showed the boy heading towards the sewer at 12.41 pm on Thursday.
A little while later, police found another CCTV and examined footage — they were in for a shock.
“The boy was seen going away from the sewer at 12.51 pm — 10 minutes after he reportedly fell in. But there was no footage of him coming out from anywhere,” a police officer said.
Police then decided to circulate the footage across WhatsApp groups and police stations to find the child.
Till Friday morning, they didn’t get a response — till the video reached his teacher.
“To trace the child, the CCTV footage was circulated in local WhatsApp groups, including those of Rajokri residents, all nearby schools, and adjacent police stations. Today, the child was successfully identified by a teacher of the MCD School in Rajokri. He said that the child is a Class 3 student and lives in Rajokri village,” DCP (Southwest) Amit Goel said.
Police reached out to his family, and that’s when the full story emerged — 24 hours after he ‘disappeared’.
The child had managed to ‘roll’ out of a broken area in the sewer, about 20 metres away from the opening he fell into. He then walked back home and went about life as usual.
Later, the child told police that he and a friend were playing in the rain, and he accidentally fell into the sewer.
“Approximately 20 metres from where he fell, the sewer was found to be open, allowing the boy to get out. As per his statement, he had gone for a rain bath along with his friend, who studies in the same school. Due to rainwater covering the area, the sewer opening was not visible, and he accidentally fell into it. However, he managed to get out after a short distance and returned home safely,” DCP Goel said.
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