Email
Print
ShareHe was rescued by the army and firemen from Mumbai.
KURUKSHETRA: The ordeal of five-year-old Prince, who had fallen into an irrigation well on Friday evening in Shahabad town near Kurukshetra in Haryana, came to a happy end on Sunday evening when he was rescued by a combined force of army and firemen from Mumbai.
It was a happy homecoming for Prince, whose fifth birthday fell on Sunday. As a senior army officer lifted the boy, covered in a white sheet, out of a bucket that was lowered into the 60-foot well, scenes of joy spread across the place as onlookers hugged each other in an impromptu celebration.
There was a dramatic transformation in the mood as the officer removed the sheet over the boy's body and unveiled a smiling Prince as the night fell. The area which was earlier enveloped in hushed anticipation with prayers among the onlookers began to wear a festive look.
Ram Chander and Karamjit, Prince's parents, were overjoyed with the safe return of their son, who was immediately moved in an ambulance to a local hospital for a check-up. Earlier, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had led the nation in praying for the safety of Prince whose travails were captured live by television channels. The rescue operation, led by the 66 Engineers regiment of the Ambala Cantonment-based 2 Corps of Indian Army, started at 3 pm on Saturday at Haldaheri village near Shahabad town of Kurukshetra district.
Prince fell into the open well at about 6 pm on Friday accidentally while playing with friends. Lt Gen AK Vidyarathi, commanding office of 65 Engineers Regiment, which was requisitioned from Ambala cantonement, was complimented profusely for the rescue operation.
Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and local MP Navin Jindal were all praise for the Army that took more than 30 hours to retrieve the child. "It was a constant battle between hope and despair," said Capt Ajay Chaudhary, who led the operation. Hooda announced Rs two lakh as aid to Prince's family and Rs 51,000 each to the rescue team members.
