A two-year-old boy who had fallen into an unused borewell in a field at Bhagwanpura village in Punjab's Sangrur district five days ago, and was finally pulled-out earlier today, has been declared dead.
Fatehveer Singh, the only child of his parents, who turned two on Monday, was rescued in a massive operation after nearly 109 hours of being trapped in the narrow tube at around 5.15 am on Tuesday.
He was immediately airlifted to a hospital near the village and was later transferred to PGIMS in Chandigarh by road for treatment.
It is now being reported that he has breathed his last at the hospital a short while ago.
The toddler was playing in a field near his house when he accidentally fell into the borewell which was covered with a cloth, on Thursday evening. Officials said, his mother instantly tried to pull him out, but failed to retrieve the child.
A high-level rescue team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) assisted by police, civil authorities, villagers and volunteers were pressed into service to rescue the child, late on Thursday.
A parallel shaft was dug with the help of concrete pipes to reach out to Fatehveer, but the rescuers kept facing technical issues during the operation which kept them from reaching out to the toddler.
Whilst oxygen was being pumped into the narrow pit, no food or water could be provided to the child, who reportedly fell unconscious during the time, the officials said.
A camera was also installed to monitor the condition of the child who was tied to a rope to prevent him from slipping further.
Meanwhile, angry at the alleged delay in rescuing the child, the villagers gathered around the spot and raised slogans against the Punjab government.
As a result, heavy police was deployed to prevent any untoward incident.
In a tweet on Monday, Chief Minister Amarinder Singh assured that he was constantly monitoring the situation.
However, Mr Singh’s assurance was not enough to pacify former Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal who held the chief minister responsible for ‘endangering’ the life of the toddler.
The incident has brought to the fore the safety concerns around abandoned and uncovered borewells, which have repeatedly jeopardised many lives in the past.
