Tragic scenes were witnessed at the Government General Hospital casualty ward where the body of 13-year-old Abhishek was kept.
Eldest of the two siblings, Abhishek was drowned while he was swimming at the GMC swimming pool at Syamala Nagar on Friday evening.
Deputy Commissioner of GMC Abdul Latif said that the boy had gone into the deep-end of the pool, usually used by more experienced swimmers. Another version was that the boy was resuscitated for a while after being drowned, but died on the way to hospital. Cause of his death would be known only after the post-mortem was completed.
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The boy’s father Krishna, and mother Venkata Ramana are advocates, and the family resides at AT Agraharam.
“My son loves swimming, and he along with his younger brother, go there every evening. This evening, he went alone to the pool. I received a phone call at about 7 p.m. and I rushed to the pool only to find the gate closed. We were made to go to various hospitals in search of our son, but finally we found him here,” said Krishna, weeping inconsolably over the loss of his son. The incident had once again raised disturbing questions over the lack of safety at the swimming pool.
The pool is manned by a lone coach, assisted by two helpers. None of them are on regular pay, and are recruited on outsourcing basis. In summer, the pool usually bristles with boys and girls. This year, about 200 boys and girls have enrolled for the camp, making it almost impossible for the lone coach to handle the children. In addition to the camp, regular members also use the pool in summer.
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The GMC has also failed to provide lifeguards.