Eight-year-old boy dies after falling into open sewer in Karachi’s Korangi

Karachi: An eight-year-old boy died after falling into an open sewer in Mehran Town, Korangi, police officials said on Monday.

According to Korangi police, the child, identified as Dilbar, was playing outside his home when he fell into the uncovered sewer. His uncle later retrieved the body after neighbourhood children informed the family about the incident.

Police said the body was shifted to a hospital for completion of legal formalities. Family members said Dilbar, the only child of his parents, lost his life due to negligence as the sewer had been left uncovered.

Speaking to the media outside Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, the boy’s father Azhar Ali said his son was playing near the sewer when he fell in because the cover was missing. He added that the sewer cover had been absent for more than a month.

Deputy Mayor Salman Abdullah Murad visited the family’s home to offer condolences. Talking to journalists, he said his visit was not political but purely to express sympathy with the bereaved family.

He said he had contacted the town chairman, who was in Hyderabad at the time, and noted that the union council chairman had been provided with 10 sewer covers around 10 days earlier. Murad vowed strict action against the officers and elected representatives responsible for the incident.

The deputy mayor added that the town and UC chairman did not belong to the Pakistan Peoples Party, but stressed that the child was “our child as well”. He said the same course of action would be taken as was adopted after the Nipa incident.

The tragedy comes a month after a similar incident sparked public outrage on social media, when a three-year-old child fell into an uncovered manhole near the Nipa flyover on November 30. In that case, several government officials were suspended after the child’s body was recovered 14 hours later, following rescue efforts supported by local residents.

Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab later visited the family of the three-year-old, Muhammad Ibrahim, apologised for the incident and assured them of an impartial investigation, saying action would be taken against anyone found negligent.

However, last week a Karachi police committee termed that incident an accident, stating that in light of the parents’ statements and the circumstances, no cognisable offence was established.