The body of the Delhi teenager who drowned after falling into an open drain in southeast Delhi’s Jasola on Saturday has been found.
A search and rescue operation, which included multiple agencies, was launched but by Saturday evening the boy had not been found. Visuals, now viral on social media, also showed the boy’s father digging through the drain in a bid to find him. Then the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) also joined the operation.
The incident took place just before noon on Saturday and the boy was identified as a Class 8 student at a local government-run school and lived in the area with his family. Delhi’s Fire Services (DFS) officials said that two fire tenders along with a rescue team were sent to the spot after the fire control room was informed about the incident at 11.54am.
The deputy commissioner of police (southeast) Vineet Kumar said, “Since the flow of water in the drain was very fast, the boy could not be traced. The search was called off late Saturday and resumed on Sunday, with rescue teams and divers also deployed.
MCD officer suspended
Following the incident, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) suspended a junior engineer of South East (Central) Zone, citing alleged dereliction of duty.
The drain was initially believed to be under the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), but agency officials said that it had been handed over to Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) for maintenance, according to an earlier HT report.
