Kids throw caution to winds, play in rivulets in Patiala

Patiala, July 23

Children continue to play in and around Badi and Chhoti rivulets even as a threat of sudden increase in water level looms large due to fresh rain upstream. The district administration had already directed people to stay away from the water bodies.

Yesterday, the district administration had sounded an alert to a number of villages in the district in the wake of incessant rain in the hills resulting in high water level in many water bodies passing through the district. The residents of villages downstream of Sarala at Ghanaur and those abutting Tangri were cautioned. The administration also stated that it was keeping a watch on the water level.

But contrary to the strict guidelines of the administration, children were seen playing around the Chhoti Nadi adjacent to Tej Bagh Colony.

A 16-year-old boy, who had gone to the Choti Nadi adjacent to Patiala city to attend to nature’s call, allegedly slipped and drowned in the rivulet.

Residents living around the Chhoti Nadi said many people regularly went to the seasonal rivulet to relieve themselves as there were no public toilets in their area. “People live around these water bodies and children play here on a regular basis. The administration will have to implement the directions strictly in order to avoid a mishap in the gushing waters.