3 days on, 4-year-old still trapped in borewell

Gurgaon: It’s been three days and four-year-old Mahi is still trapped in a borewell near Manesar. A rescue team, led by the Army’s engineering corp, achieved some success on Friday night by moving a portion of the rock that was obstructing the passage of the tunnel being dug to reach the child.

The four-year-old fell into a 70-feet borewell at a village near Manesar on Wednesday. Rescuers have been struggling to reach Mahi by setting up a link from a parallel pit but haven’t achieved much success.

The team is using machines to slowly drill a hole in the rock to set up the parallel pit. However, earlier around midnight, the rescue work was halted briefly after the Army hit a rock while drilling. The rock could not be broken manually and rescuers have been careful while using the drill as it could hurt Mahi. She is being supplied oxygen through pipes but her condition is still not known.

“The work to rescue the child was hampered by the presence of hard rocks which have come in the way of the link to be established between the borewell and a parallel pit dug up in order to reach her,” said Deputy Commissioner, Gurgaon, PC Meena.

Asked if any timeline can be set for rescuing the child, he said “the rocks are creating problems and it is going to take time”.
More than 100 officials drawn from Army, fire, police, health and revenue departments are drilling the pit parallel to the borewell into which she fell while playing at village Kho.

A team of Gurgaon Rapid Metro was pressed into service to drill the pit further and they are assisting the Army to save the child even as Sonia, a distraught mother of Mahi, is making repeated appeals to the administration and the public to help save her daughter.

Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said efforts were on to get the girl out in fine condition and instructions have been given for that. He said “whosoever is responsible for the carelessness (for not covering the borewell), a case is being made against him”.