A two-and-a-half-year-old girl drowned after slipping into an open stormwater drain (SWD) in Doddabommasandra in Vidyaranyapura on Tuesday morning. The deceased, Tanushree, is the only child of Sabanna and Lakshmi, a couple from Mundaragi in Yadgir district.
Sabanna works as a construction labourer and Lakshmi is a domestic help. The couple lived in a rented house in Raghadendra Mutt locality in Doddabommasandra.
According to the police, they would drop Tanushree at her aunt's house, which was barely100 yards away from their home while on their way to work. Lakshmi would return around 10.30 a.m. to take Tanushree back to their house.
On Tuesday at 9.30 a.m., Tanushree ventured out of her aunt’s house to play. It was only when Lakshmi came to pick her up that they realised she was missing. They searched for Tanushree and found her in the drain. Her uncle Mallikarjuna jumped into the drain, picked her up and took her to the closest hospital where she was declared brought dead.
Drain had not been fenced
The police said that though the drain — three feet deep and three feet wide — passed through a residential locality, it had not been fenced. Based on a complaint, the Vidyaranyapura police have registered a case against the officials concerned charging them for causing death due to negligence.
Mayor R. Sampath Raj visited the spot and ordered suspension of two engineers holding them directly responsible for not covering the drain. “The ward Assistant Engineer and the stormwater drain Assistant Engineer have been suspended. They should have ensured that the drain was fenced. The child’s house was not even close to the drain,” he said. He announced a compensation of ₹5 lakh for the family of the deceased child.
Dr. S. Nagaraju, Joint Commissioner, Yelahanka zone, said that the drain was part of Hebbal valley and was left uncovered since its survey and removal of encroachments was yet to be completed. BWSSB is also carrying out pipeline work in the area, he said.
“Some encroachments on the drain were removed in 2016. But later it stopped as the residents demanded a resurvey. Though we have written to revenue officials several times, the resurvey is yet to be conducted. Unless all the encroachments are removed and the retention wall is rebuilt, it would be difficult to cover the drain,” he said.
Doddabommasandra Councillor Jayalakshmamma Pillappa said the SWD is close to 2 km long and there are several makeshift houses along the drain. “We have repeatedly pointed out to the BBMP that there is no fencing. People bathe their children on the bund of the drain and even defecate there. It is extremely unsafe.”
