2 farmers fall into manhole, 1 goes missing

Tribune News Service

Hisar, August 14

The district authorities have roped in the Army to launch a search operation for a farmer who slipped into a manhole and went missing in Nataar village near Sirsa on Wednesday night.

Twentyfive-year-old Kala and another villager Puran Singh had gone to the fields for irrigation when they fell into the sewage hole.

An official said while Puran was rescued from the manhole on Wednesday night, Kala is still missing. Puran is in a critical condition and has been referred to a private hospital in Hisar.

The official said Kala was trying to put a pipeline in the manhole to extract water to irrigate the fields. He, however, fell into the hole as he lost consciousness due to effect of some poisonous gas in the manhole. Puran too tried to save Kala and raised an alarm, when he sensed breathing problem due to the gas. He was rescued by some people who rushed to the spot after hearing his screams.

Deputy Commissioner RC Bidhan called in the Army from the Hisar Cantonment to carry out the search operation for Kala.

The DC along with DIG Arun Singh were present on the spot as the Army along with the rescue team of the district administration try to locate the missing farmer. So far, the rescue teams have dug up three manholes in an attempt to trace Kala.