Boy falls to death in trench dug for civic body project

Civic officials said since there were no residences in a radius of 100 metres from the trench and the area was marshy,they never expected children or others to come near it. “We will immediately cover the trench. It is our fault,” said an official of the BMC’s Storm Water Drains department. The Crompton Kanjur Nullah flows from Kanjurmarg to Vikhroli.

“Although the trench was not that deep,the water was stagnant and it had turned swampy. This may have led to the boy’s death,” said the engineer. Mohammad Arshad,Faizaan’s uncle,said they were unaware why the boy had gone to the area. Faizaan was a student of the Tagore Nagar Municipal School in Vikhroli.

Vikhroli police officials said they registered a case of accidental death in the matter. “Only after a detailed investigation will we decide whether anyone should be booked for causing death due to negligence,” said an officer. “Boys from the nearby slums often would go to play and swim in the water. It is possible that the boy went deeper than he had intended to go.”

In December last year,three-year-old Ayub Sheikh,a resident of Mankhurd,died after falling into an open manhole. Just a day after the incident,another boy,five-year-old Shahnawaaz Shah,died after falling into another open manhole in the same area. Despite BMC’s efforts to locate the boy’s body over 10 days,Sheikh’s body could no be traced.