Minor boy walks out unnoticed, safely from sewer at Rajokri village

What started as a harrowing incident involving the possible drowning of a minor boy in an open sewer at Rajokri village in South West Delhi on Thursday afternoon, ended with a wave of relief after the child was found safe, following hours of frantic rescue operations and an intense local search.

According to the police, around 1:15 pm on July 31, the Alpha-30 PCR vehicle received an urgent alert from local boys who claimed that a boy fell into an open sewer.

Acting swiftly, the PCR team tried to trace the child. When initial efforts proved unsuccessful, they alerted the Vasant Kunj South police station, sparking a multi-agency rescue operation. Soon, a massive operation was launched involving police officials, Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), fire brigade personnel, Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) workers and even a JCB machine to remove sewage and clear clogged chambers.

Divers, sanitation workers and local emergency teams coordinated efforts until late in the night, with one shared goal, to find the missing boy. Amid this, CCTV footage from the surrounding area was retrieved and reanalysed in which two boys were seen running near the sewer line, and one of them appeared to fall into it. Moments later, both boys were seen running back from another point.

However, due to the lack of camera coverage around the exact point of his exit from the sewer, it remained unclear where the boy had come out or not.

Twenty feet away from the site where the child fell, the rescue team discovered an open section of the sewer, which likely became his escape route.

As no one could identify the child locally, CCTV footage was circulated in various WhatsApp groups, including those of Rajokri residents, nearby schools and local police stations, in hopes of tracing the boy’s identity.

Relief finally came on Friday morning when a teacher from the MCD School in Rajokri identified the child from the footage as one of her students. The boy, aged 7, is studying in Class III and resides in Shera Colony, Rajokri.

According to the boy’s statement to the police, he had gone out to play in the rain with a friend — who lives in the same house and also studies in the same school — when the incident occurred.

Due to accumulated rainwater, the sewer opening was not visible, causing him to fall in. Fortunately, he managed to climb out after a short distance and return home safely. The boy was examined and found to be physically fine.

However, the incident has raised serious concerns about the safety of children and the negligence in keeping open drains unguarded.

Locals are now demanding immediate action from the civic authorities to cover all open sewers in the area.

“It could have turned tragic. We were helpless yesterday, watching the rescue efforts and praying that the child was alive,” said Ramesh Kumar, a resident of Rajokri.

“This is not the first time something like this has happened, and if proper steps aren’t taken, it won’t be the last,” he added.

The teacher, who wished not to be named, said he saw the circulated video and informed the police about him being one of his students. After this, the cops went to the boy’s house and found him safe and sound.

The boy’s parents were also unaware about the incident, Kumar added.

Furthermore, he demanded that the civic agency should cover the drain to avoid any further incident.