The last rites of Souraneel Sarkar, the eight-year-old boy who was crushed under a truck on his way to school at the Behala Chowrasta intersection on Friday morning, will be held on Monday, said a relative.
Saroj Kumar Sarkar, Souraneel’s father, suffered serious injuries in his legs in the accident on the Taratala-bound flank of Diamond Harbour Road. He is scheduled to undergo surgery this week, said sources at SSKM Hospital, where he is undergoing treatment.
Dipika Sarkar, Souraneel’s mother, has been living with her brother in his Dum Dum house for the past couple of days.
“The last rites of Souraneel will be held at Bagbazar Ghat on Monday,” said Somnath Sarkar, her brother. “She is still overcome with grief. She is barely eating or sleeping.”
Dipika visited the trauma care department of SSKM Hospital, where she met her husband, on Sunday evening.
“His right leg is fractured. He is supposed to get operated upon on Tuesday or Wednesday. His blood sugar level is on the higher side. It has to be brought under control before the operation,” said a relative who accompanied Dipika to the hospital.
“He was with Souraneel when the accident happened. He is still in trauma,” she said.
“The patient is stable, oriented and conscious. He will undergo surgery in a few days after further assessment of his health,” said Mukul Bhattacharyya, head of the orthopaedic department at the Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research (SSKM Hospital).
The three-storeyed house where the Sarkars live is in Nabapally in Thakurpukur, a 10-minute drive through a mesh of bylanes from Diamond Harbour Road.
The Sarkars live on the second floor and the floors below have been rented out.
A group of policemen has been deputed on the road leading to the house.
Bikash Roy, who owns Loknath Bhandar, which sells cakes, biscuits, dry food and school stationery, was sitting inside his store in Nabapally when The Telegraph visited the area on Sunday.
Roy opens his store at 4.30am every weekday. Many children, who go to school in the morning, would buy snacks and stationery items from Roy’s store on the way. Souraneel was one of them.
“He was such a sweet boy. His father would take him to school. He would wave at me every single day, even if he did not buy anything. He waved at me on Friday as well,” said
Roy.
In an interview to TV channel ABP Ananda, telecast on Sunday, Dipika said she came to know about the “improved traffic management” at Behala Chowrasta.
“I hope it remains that way. So that another mother does not lose her child,” she said.
