Jaipur: Four Children including two brothers, were buried alive when soil caved in a pit in Sikar on Sunday evening. A pall of gloom descended on Kachi Basti area of the city when news about the tragic mishap spread quickly. The victims have been identified as Mahesh (8), Sanjay (10) Abhishek (10) and Rahul (9). The Sikar police said Abhishek and Rahul were brothers.
The matter came to light only when an 11-year-old boy who escaped unscathed in the mishap informed families about their children buried inside a mound of soil. The officials of district administration said that five children were playing in a pit which was dug up by the forest department along the fence in order to prevent animals from straying there.
“The children were playing in the pit; above it was a pile of soil which was fenced off by the forest department. The children were digging it up with their hands when the soil above them caved in,” an official said. A battery of senior officials including district collector arrived at the spot and promised a compensation of Rs 50,000 to the grieving families from the CM Relief Fund.
Additional district collector Jai Prakash Narayan informed TOI that the soil was loose in the area, which had been fenced off by the forest department. “We will also be erecting a board in the area and fencing off the area more thoroughly to prevent such accidents in future,” he said adding that it was unfortunate that the children, unmindful of the danger, made their way through the fence and to this spot where the sand caved in on them.
The family members and residents of the Basti, however, blamed the forest department for digging up pits all over the area which turned fatal for the kids. The district administration has set up a probe.