Bangalore civic body expects parents to be watchful 24x7

Just a day after 12-year-old Aravind Kumar H drowned in the Vrishabavathi canal near the Gali Anjeneya temple on Mysore Road, the blame-game began between the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and relatives of the victim.

The relatives blamed the BBMP for the boy’s death. Aravind’s uncle Lakshman N, who is an employee in the BBMP, said, “Last month, the Gali Anjeneya temple got completely flooded due to heavy rain. The BBMP had closed all the vents in the drain because of the flyover construction on the canal. When it rained, the sewage water entered the temple and nearby areas were inundated. So they brought JCBs and cleared the blockage and dumped the silt gathered by the canal. In order to move the JCBs, they also cut open the iron fencing. If the BBMP, after completion of work, had closed the fence, this incident would not have taken place,” Lakshman said.

While the residents and relatives blame the BBMP, Hampi Nagar ward corporator R Chandrashekariah blamed the parents and relatives for not taking proper care of their children. “The parents should be cautious and alert when their children go out. The locality is very close to the canal which is deep and dangerous. We have also warned the residents not to allow their children near the drains, but the parents ignore our warnings and blame us when anything untoward happens,” he said defending the Palike.

Parents shattered

Aravind’s mother Devamma has not eaten since Friday and is still hoping that her son will return. The neighbours are trying to console her. “He was the only male child of the family. While his four elder sisters helped the mother with household chores, he was sent to study in a private English-medium school. All the money they earned was spent on his education. Now their dream is shattered,” a neighbour said

The incident

According to Dayanand, who is Aravind’s friend, he along with Aravind, and other friends Harish and Santhosh, had gone for a festival at the neighbouring Kavika Layout. After eating food they were returning home when they saw a ball floating in the canal. “Harish and Aravind climbed down the silt, which was dumped by the BBMP after desilting. Harish was the first to go after the ball. He slipped and fell into the canal, but his slipper was caught in the mud and he managed to climb up. Then he went home to take a bath as he was completely soaked in sewage. After Harish left, Aravind tried to fetch the ball, but he slipped into the canal. As the sewage flow was high due to rain, he was washed away within seconds. We were shocked and ran to inform his parents,” said Dayanand, an SSLC student studying at Byatarayanapura government school.

Manjula, a resident of the same locality, said she saw the boy drowning. “I was standing near the fence when the boys shouted. Aravind was being washed away in the canal and was waving his hand for help. Within a few seconds he had drowned. My husband Alex was nearby. I informed him and he rushed to save the boy, but by then he was untraceable. The flow of the sewage was very fast,” she said.

‘BBMP responsible for death’
R Anjanamurthy, chief secretary for Dr BR Ambedkar Yuvakara Sangha, accused the BBMP of negligence.

“On Friday evening, the mayor and deputy mayor came here and instead of admitting to their mistake, they put the blame on us. They say we should keep our children away from the drain. But it’s a natural instinct of children to go after balls, kites and other such items. Had the BBMP closed the fence after desilting, the children would have had no access to enter the canal. When I questioned the corporator and the engineers, they said that the work was still in progress and they would close it only after the work was done. But before they complete the work, there could be more such tragedies here.

We want the silt to be removed immediately and the fence
must be closed right away,” he said.

Former mayor PR Ramesh said that the BBMP is to be held responsible.
“The BBMP claims it has removed the silt from the canal, but my question is how long does it take to remove the dumped silt? They should have removed it within two to three days of desilting. Now after so many months, the silt will flow back into the canal and the purpose will be defeated. Also, the place of the incident is thickly populated. It was the BBMP’s duty to close the barricade so that there is no access point for children to go inside. Instead of blaming the public, the BBMP would have arranged for a security at the place or take up preventive measures like educating the public. The BBMP has taken the lives of the poor for granted,” Ramesh said.     b_lakshmikantha@dnaindia.net