Two children playing near Bagjola Canal fell into the water on Wednesday morning. One of them died.
A four-year-old girl and a five-year-old boy were playing along the canal at Kestopur, near VIP Road, when both slipped into the water, a police officer said.
Residents rescued them and took them to a hospital, where the girl passed away a few hours later. The boy is currently receiving treatment, the officer said.
“The residents of the area got into the canal to rescue the children. The boy was fished out almost immediately and taken to a hospital, but the girl was untraceable for the next 30-40 minutes. Finally, the girl was fished out in an unconscious state after thecity police’s disaster management group was activated,” said an officer of Bidhannagar police.
The Police identified the boy as Priyangshu Kumar, 5, and the girl as Ritu Konai, 4.
According to sources in the hospital, water had entered the girl’s lungs, causing her death.
Many in the neighbourhood the children in the locality were in the habit of playing along the canal. However, it was strange that no one saw the kids fall into the canal.
“This appears to be an accident. We have started an unnatural death case. We will examine the people who first saw the boy drowning in the water. The statement of the boy will also be recorded,” said an officer who is part of the probe team.
“Our children play along the canal. This was very unusual. The girl’s mother did not even realise that her daughter had fallen into the water. She was busy with her daily chores,” said a neighbour.
Police said they had not received any complaint till Wednesday evening.
The unfenced canal runs several kilometres through the city and has hundreds of hutments along its banks.
The 38km-long Bagjola canal carries water from BT Road in Kamarhati in the west to the Bidyadhari river in the east, cutting through parts of Baranagar, Dum Dum, Lake Town and New Town. The irrigation department has split the canal into two halves — upper Bagjola canal, from the origin till VIP Road, and the lower Bagjola canal, from VIP Road till the Bidhyadhari.
