Boy dies days after falling into borewell in Indian village

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Saturday announced a compensation of INR 400,000 for the family of the eight-year-old boy who died after falling in a borewell in the state’s Betul area, about 170 km from the capital city of Bhopal. 

The eight-year-old fell into the borewell on 06 December and the rescue operations were launched soon after. Despite massive efforts, the boy could not be saved.

On Twitter, the Chief Minister condoled the death, as he said: “It’s tragic that little Tanmay - who fell into the borewell in Betul’s Mandvi village - could not be rescued despite the intensive efforts by the administration. I pray for the peace of his soul, and I also hope that the family gets strength in this hour of grief.”

“In this hour, the grief-stricken family should not think they are alone. The whole state of Madhya Pradesh is with them. A compensation of ₹4 lakh will be given to the family from the state government,” he further added, paying tribute.

The parents of the boy - Tanmay Sahu - had said that he fell into the borewell when he was playing in a farm on Tuesday.

 "The boy was rescued around 5 am on Saturday. However, he was declared dead," State Home Guard Commandant S R Azami, who was engaged in the rescue operation, was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

He was reported to be stuck at a depth of about 35 to 40 feet. Amid hectic efforts, earthmoving machines were used to dig a parallel tunnel.

On Friday, district collector Amanbir Singh Bains was quoted as saying by PTI that there was no response from the boy.

A video tweeted by news agency ANI showed the rescue teams taking the body - which was recovered on the fourth day of the operations - to the ambulance.