Rescue operations in full swing to rescue 8 year-old trapped in 60 ft-deep pit

Rescue operations were in full swing on Wednesday to pull out an eight-year-old boy, who had accidentally fallen into 60 feet-deep abandoned borewell at Neeramanvi village in Raichur in north Karnataka.

Though the authorities had swung into action immediately after they learnt that the boy Sandeep had slipped into the open borewell while he was running to catch a truck passing through a field around noon on Tuesday, the rescue work was initially hampered by remote location of the mishap and later due to the presence of a large boulder that stood in the way of the diggers and the boy.

Anxiety was writ large on the faces of the officials supervising the rescue work as well as the hundreds of villagers, who had gathered at the spot. For, the condition of the Sandeep, who is stuck at a depth of around 39 feet, is not known. Though Sandeep was responding to the shouts of rescue workers initially on Tuesday, he has remained silent throughout the overnight operation, which was continued till late Wednesday afternoon.

The boy has spent more than 27 hours in the borewell, which is barely 12 inches in diameter, without any food or water. Though the authorities are supplying him oxygen, the absence of any movements by the boy has led to deep concern among the people.

The mishap involving Sandeep becomes even more heart-rending as his father lost both his legs in an accident a couple of months ago and his mother, a cancer patient, is undergoing treatment at a hospital. Sandeep’s grandfather, who was present at the site, kept his fingers crossed and prayed that the rescue operation concludes on a successful note.

Meanwhile, the team of experts from Hatti Gold Mines, who had arrived at the spot with cranes and other earth digging equipments to assist the Raichur district administration in the rescue operations last evening, were hopeful of reaching the trapped boy. The rescuers first dug 40 feet down from the surface, some 12 feet away from the original pit and began tunneling horizontally to reach the boy.

But, the operation was hampered on Wednesday morning when the mine specialist encountered a large boulder while digging. Though they crossed the hurdle, the delay in the rescue operation became a matter of concern, particularly with the boy not responding to shouts since the last 24 hours.

However, superintendent of Raichur district police D A Padmanayana has expressed confidence that the rescue operation will be successful.