A four-year-old boy died after falling through a fibre sheet covering an open manhole near a park in Ranhola, west Delhi, with his body recovered nearly 20 hours later, according to a Times of India report published on November 11. The child’s family has alleged that the rescue operation was delayed and that authorities failed to secure a dangerous opening beside the park.
The boy, identified as Imran, was reportedly playing at the park with his five-year-old brother, Irfan, at around 3 pm. The brothers went near the manhole to answer nature’s call, the family told the newspaper. Imran fell when the fibre sheet collapsed as he climbed onto it, dropping into a narrow sewer pipeline below.
His mother, Shahjahan, rushed to the spot after hearing Irfan scream for help and alerted the police. The family remained at the site through the night, hoping the child would be found alive. His father, Khurshid, a 50-year-old labourer, told the newspaper that he identified a mutilated arm recovered by rescue personnel as belonging to his son. The family said they had still not seen his face at the time of the report.
The manhole is located between the park and a larger drain. A wall separates the two areas, but an opening remains where locals said a metal gate had once stood. Residents alleged that the gate was broken by miscreants several months ago and had not been replaced. They also said children frequently approach the drain to retrieve cricket balls hit over the park boundary, creating a continuing risk near the opening.
The reported condition of the site points to multiple safety vulnerabilities: an unsecured access point, a temporary covering over a deep sewer and a gap between a public recreation area and a drain. The location meant that children using the park could move close to the opening without a permanent barrier separating them from the sewer infrastructure.
The family also alleged that the search was initially inadequate. Khurshid told the newspaper that rescue personnel repeatedly inserted a wooden stick into the manhole while looking for Imran. He said the search was extended only after he threatened to jump into the sewer the following morning. These accounts have been attributed to the family in the report; the supplied material does not include a response from the municipal authority, police or rescue agencies.
Imran’s family moved to Delhi from Motihari in Bihar nearly four years ago. Khurshid works as a labourer and Shahjahan is a homemaker. The family had planned to travel to their village after Chhath and intended to enrol Imran’s elder brother in a government school after returning to Delhi.
Khurshid has sought compensation, saying the payment would help him educate Irfan after the loss of his younger son. The report does not specify whether the authorities have announced compensation, ordered an inquiry, repaired the damaged gate or permanently secured the manhole. Those actions, along with an official account of the rescue operation, remain pending in the supplied information.
