A 12-year-old boy died of drowning near the construction site of the coastal road at Worli. Bablu Kumar Paswan, was a resident of Madras Wadi, a large settlement along the coast near Worli sea face. The coastal road construction site is right in front of the settlement.
Sukhlal Verpe, senior police inspector, Worli police station, said that the incident occurred between 4.30 p.m. and 5 p.m. on Friday. “Bablu, along with two other younger boys, had gone for a walk along the path created for the coastal road when he slipped and fell into a pit dug for the construction,” he said. Mr. Verpe said the boys called for help and the locals pulled the boy out and rushed him to Nair hospital, where he died while receiving treatment.
The coastal road project involves reclaiming portion from the sea for which work is currently under way at several sites between Nariman Point and Worli Sea Face. According to police officials, the site where the victim slipped, was nearly 80 meters into the sea. “He and the two other boys had gone to attend nature’s call. While there was no high tide, the sea is quite deep in that area. There were no bruises on his body to indicate he had hit a rock,” a senior police official said.
The actual construction work, they said, was happening at another spot on the site. “At spots where work is on the workers and other staff ensure that locals stay away. However, many of them choose to ignore the boards put up warning them of the danger. At the spot where the incident happened, there were gunny bags securing the pit,” a police official said.
