Civic negligence? Waterlogged pits in Delhi’s Rohini claim lives of three children

During a prolonged spell of rain on August 11, two teenagers and a child drowned in Rohini, West Delhi. The cause of death: waterlogged pits.

According to police reports, in all three incidents, the victims had ventured towards pits in their respective neighbourhoods while playing. Due to the inefficiency of multiple civic authorities operating in Delhi, these pits had transformed into ponds, which the children used as play areas.

Notably, the incidents did not occur in the same locality. Two teenagers, identified as 15-year-old Divyansh Kumar and 17-year-old Mayank Kumar, drowned in a makeshift pool filled with rainwater at Prem Nagar near Rani Khera village. According to a senior police official, water had accumulated on vacant land owned by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), where the two drowned while bathing. However, family members revealed that both boys had gone to play cricket on a dry patch of land near the pool.

“The boys had gone to play cricket along with two others from the neighbourhood. There may have been more, but I am only aware of those who left from our locality. I heard from one of them that while playing, the ball landed in the pool, leading two of the children to rush towards the pit to retrieve it. They slipped and began to drown. Both Mayank and Divyansh rushed to rescue them, but unfortunately, both of them drowned in the pit,” said Rakesh Kumar, Divyansh’s brother.

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Rakesh emphasised that there has been no discussion regarding compensation for the victims’ next of kin from the government. Currently, both the Lieutenant Governor’s (L-G) DDA and the Delhi government are blaming each other for the incident.

According to the DDA, the land parcel was transferred to the Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (DSIIDC) in 2007. The DSIIDC operates under the Delhi government. The area is usually cordoned off with ropes to restrict the access of residents.

Furthermore, Divyansh’s brother added that the pool was approximately 15-feet deep. “A ravine forms every time there is even slight rainfall. We have complained to the authorities multiple times, but nobody listens. This was just one of the pits; the entire land is marked with more such pits varying in depth,” he said.

A resident highlighted that due to the lack of a drainage system on the DSIIDC land, at least five deaths are reported every monsoon. “Without a drainage system, the DDA’s open ground gets filled each time it rains even slightly. Every monsoon, there are around five deaths in this area because of waterlogging,” he said, requesting anonymity.

Neither the Delhi government nor the L-G’s office has announced any plans to compensate the victims’ families.

A similar incident unfolded at Rohini’s Sector 20, where a pond had formed due to rainwater in a DDA park. As water accumulated, officials noted that the pool had become quite deep and was kept off limits to residents, both adults and children.

The victim was identified as Tarun, a seven-year-old resident of Aman Vihar in North West Delhi. A senior police official shared that the boy was pronounced dead on arrival when taken to a nearby hospital.

“We learned that the child had been taken to a nearby hospital when we reached the spot. Upon arriving at the hospital, we found that the doctor had pronounced him dead on arrival,” he said.

Currently, Tarun’s immediate family has left the national capital for their hometown. His father works at a garment shop in a shopping center, while his mother is a homemaker.

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However, one of his relatives, Jaswant Singh, who lives in the national capital,  highlighted the authorities’ apathetic handling of the situation. Jaswant added that the tragedy could have been easily avoided if a security guard had been posted at the site.

“Tarun’s death could have been avoided if the authorities had made proper provisions to ensure residents’ safety. It is sheer negligence on the DDA’s part that caused this death. The lack of adequate safety measures to warn individuals about the presence of the pond, along with the absence of a security guard, are glaring oversights,” Jawant said.

In an earlier statement, the DDA claimed that a security guard at the Chhat Ghat area had intervened and rushed the child to the hospital.

“This is a 12-acre park, and the Chhat Ghat area covers around 3,000 square metres with a depth of approximately 3.5 feet. The water body is fenced with a grill all around, and residents have been warned not to enter that area. Yesterday, despite warnings from the guard, 7 to 8 children were playing in the area where water had collected due to heavy rain,” the DDA statement read.

It added that the security guard attempted to rescue the deceased and escorted him to a nearby hospital.

On the other hand, Singh mentioned that the family is still uncertain whether Tarun slipped or intentionally went to take a dip in the pool. “We are still unsure whether he slipped by mistake or had gone to bathe in the pond,” he said.

At present, none of the authorities have announced a compensation scheme for the deceased’s family.

Earlier, during the monsoon on June 28, the Delhi government had announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh for every family that lost a member due to the rains.