Public outrage as ‘open neglect’ snuffs life out of minor boy in Lucknow

LUCKNOW Saifuddin, a scrap dealer and his wife Rukhsana, who works as a domestic help to make ends meet, had named their son Shahrukh Khan after the Bollywood star with the hope that he would bring luck and prosperity to the family.
But fate had something else in store. Tragedy struck little Shahrukh when he was walking on the footpath in front of Abdul Kalam Technical University on Tuesday afternoon. On his way to nearby ‘bhandara’ along with his sisters, the boy suddenly slipped into an open manhole. His two sisters, Khushbu, 11, and Zoya, 10, were unable to rescue him due to the depth of the manhole and their young age.
The tragic accident sparked public outrage over civic negligence and lack of safety measures around open manholes in Jankipuram.
“Jal Sansthan is the worst department of the city. The GM never answers the phone and engineers don’t attend to complaints. They have made it a habit to ignore requests for capping manholes,” said Mukesh Singh Chauhan, a corporator of LMC and Congress candidate from Lucknow East.
Ranjeet Singh, corporator of Mankameshwar ward, said: “We require stricter regulations and better infrastructure maintenance to prevent such incidents. I demand justice for Shahrukh’s untimely death. Those responsible for his death must be punished and the family must be given adequate compensation.”
The boy, Shahrukh Khan, a resident of Sector 7, Jankipuram, was the second son among seven siblings (five sisters and an elder brother).
His parents Saifuddin and Rukhsana expressed devastation over the loss. “I got him admitted to SR Public School despite our financial constraints because he was good at studies. His teachers often praised him, and we believed he would change our future. I don’t know how I’ll manage now with my five daughters and one mentally unstable son. I can’t imagine washing dishes and cleaning floors for the rest of my life,” lamented Rukhsana, unable to contain her tears.
Saifuddin said, “No one helped when my daughters were screaming (at the time of incident). It was only after a crowd gathered that the police showed up. The open manhole claimed my son’s life.”
Municipal commissioner Inderjeet Singh said: “I have suspended the executive engineer while a police complaint has been lodged against the junior engineer, supervisor and the contractor responsible for maintaining that stretch of the road.”
The manhole that swallowed Shahrukh had been open for over three months despite complaints to civic authorities in this regard, said residents.
A local, Manoj, said, “The manhole was open for about three months. This information was also given to the LMC and Jal Nigam, but no one covered the sewer. Today, a child died after falling into it.”
Agitated over the civic neglect, residents demanded immediate action against the employees responsible for the maintenance of the sewer and adequate compensation from the state government on grounds that the victim belonged to a very poor family.