Spot on Harris bridge saw six mishaps in a yr.
The dream of getting a job during the summer vacation proved fatal for a 17-year-old from Dehu Road on Sunday. After trying hard, Sohel Shaikh (17) and his friends got a one-day assignment with an event company. However, as they were travelling to Pune on a local train, tragedy struck.
Sohel was near the door of the train when it was crossing the Harris bridge. He bent forward to take a look at the Mula river when an electric pole hit him on the head and he fell into the river.
Twenty minutes later, the fire brigade fished his body out of the river. Khadki police filed a case of accidental death.
Sohel was a resident of Main Bazar, near Deepak Ice factory in Dehu Road. He was the eldest son in the family and stayed with his widowed mother and younger brother Hussain (15), who is doing his diploma in engineering.
Sohel had just appeared for his HSC exams.
Sohel’s friend, Mujeeb Qureshi (17), who witnessed the accident, recalled, “Sohel wanted to be independent in life at a young age. Therefore he wanted to make the most use of the holidays so that he could help his family financially.”
Qureshi said, “We all left for Pune from Dehu Road at 10 am on Sunday. We were happy. We planned to get down at Shivajinagar junction. We were sitting while Sohel preferred to stand at the door. We requested him to come and sit with us, but as he was feeling hot, he did not do so.”
He added, “When the train approached Dapodi, Sohel peeped out of the door to see the Mutha river. He did not see the electric pole. It hit him on the head and he fell down. We immediately called the police. We got down at Khadki and went back to the bridge along with the police.”
Assistant police inspector Rajesh Kadu, who is investigating the case, said, “We alerted the Khadki fire brigade and reached the spot. We found that Sohel was carrying a black bag and when he fell into the river, it was floating. We fished out the body within 20 minutes.”
He said, “We rushed him to Aundh Hospital, but he was declared dead on arrival. The post-mortem report mentioned that he had several injuries on his head and his lungs were choked because of water.”
Railways fails to act despite letter
Inspector (crime) Nishikant Bhujbal of Khadki police station said, “There have been major accidents in the past. This is the sixth accident that took place in one year at that spot. We have sent a letter to the Railways in this regard, but there has been no action in this regard. This bridge is very old and the electricity pole is just one foot away from the railway tracks.”
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