An 11-year-old girl, who had received serious head injuries after falling into a manhole, succumbed to the injuries in the Jinnah Hospital late on Tuesday night.
The victim was identified as Rachel Baig, resident of Rasulpura in Johar Town. Her father Jameel Baig, a cameraman for a local television channel, told reporters that the incident took place at 2pm when Rachel was returning from her school.
He said according to witnesses, Rachel slipped and fell in the manhole, adding that some locals after witnessing the mishap immediately informed rescue officials who failed to reach the site on time and a local boy with the help of other locals had to rescue the girl. Meanwhile, a Rescue 1122 ambulance also reached the spot and its officials took Rachel to Jinnah Hospital where she died on Tuesday night. Jameel refused to file a complaint against anyone, saying that he could not wait for justice until his death. He said he was at his job when he received a call directing him to reach hospital. The CM noted the incident and ordered authorities concerned to conduct a detailed inquiry into the matter. Members of the provincial assembly, Saiful Malok Khokhar of the PML-N and Seemal Kamran of the PML-Q, and WASA Managing Director Javed Iqbal reached the hospital to condole with the victim’s family.
The WASA MD suspended three senior officials including Johar Town XEN Rana Abdul Manan, SDO Salman Nisar and Sub-engineer Nosher Khan for their alleged negligence.