The heart-wrenching CCTV camera footage showing Ibrahim, 3, falling into an open manhole near Nipa Chowrangi on November 30 has emerged. The footage shows the boy walking out of a department store with his mother, and just a few steps away, in the store’s parking area, an open manhole.
As Ibrahim ran toward his father, he suddenly fell into the manhole. His mother’s screams alerted the people nearby, and they rushed to help. They gathered around the manhole and desperately tried to find the boy. The footage also showed no safety signs, barriers or warnings around the manhole.
Another CCTV camera footage recorded at 2:05am on November 17 has also surfaced. It shows the manhole cover in place, but moments later a dumper truck can be seen coming from the wrong side of the road and passing directly over the manhole.
As the truck moves over it, the cover can be seen breaking and falling into the manhole. Despite it being a busy road, with a large departmental store visited daily by thousands of people located on it, no department responsible replaced the manhole cover even after 13 days.
It is being claimed that the truck belonged to a contractor working on the Sindh government’s Red Line bus rapid transit (BRT) project. The vehicle was reportedly transporting construction debris.
Suspensions
Following Ibrahim’s death, Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah reportedly ordered the suspension of five officials. According to media reports, the local government department suspended Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) Municipal Services Senior Director Imran Rajput.
Gulshan-e-Iqbal Town Municipal Corporation (TMC) Assistant Engineer Rashid Fayyaz, Karachi Water & Sewerage Corporation Executive Engineer Waqar Ahmed, Gulshan-e-Iqbal Assistant Commissioner Amir Ali Shah and Gulshan-e-Iqbal Mukhtiarkar Salman Farsi have also been reportedly suspended.
Even though there have been reports of multiple suspensions over the incident, the official notification for only Farsi’s suspension had been issued until the filing of this story.
Report
The KMC has submitted the preliminary investigation report into the incident to the LG secretary. According to the report, in the early morning of December 1, they received instructions from the city mayor and the KMC municipal commissioner to initiate a rescue operation to recover the boy’s body.
“The rescue operation commenced immediately upon receiving instructions from the competent authority. Supervised by senior KMC officials, the operation involved two excavators, manual labour teams and municipal public health staff.
“After extensive efforts, the child’s body was located near the Sir Syed Engineering University, inside a chamber of the link nullah of the Gulshan-e-Iqbal TMC.
“Following the retrieval of the body, a detailed inspection of the site was carried out to determine the cause of the incident. The inspection confirmed that the ongoing Red Line BRT construction work at the site was a major contributing factor.
“Reports from the inspector concerned and area residents indicated that the BRT excavation work severely damaged and disrupted the drainage system running from Nipa to the Aziz Bhatti Park.
“It was observed that at several points the drains had been covered with temporary 2×2-foot slabs. One such slab was reportedly left open in front of the departmental store.
“It is important to note that this method of covering cleaning pits with 2×2-foot slabs is a non-standard practice and has never been used by KMC.
“Furthermore, the BRT authorities failed to formally notify or obtain clearance from the KMC before initiating the excavation. These pits were initially dug by BRT engineers and later covered during road construction.
“The facts indicate that the incident occurred due to the negligence of both the BRT officials and the management of the departmental store, as neither party took measures to secure the open drain.
“At the scene of the incident, the District East deputy commissioner, the Gulshan-e-Iqbal assistant commissioner and BRT engineers were present. Under their supervision, the excavated pits were refilled to restore smooth traffic flow. This action was taken in compliance with the directives of the competent KMC authorities.”
Clarification
The Red Line BRT project management issued a statement, and said the incident was a deeply heartbreaking tragedy, and expressed solidarity with the grieving family.
The project’s environmental & social safeguard manager said the incident took place at a location that is a considerable distance from the Red Line construction area, where no excavation work was under way and no BRT machinery, activity or obstruction was present.
“The road in that area was complete, and the old sewage channel where the incident occurred does not fall within the administrative or operational scope of Red Line.
“A senior KMC director’s letter circulating on social media gives the impression that is contrary to the facts, and the ground reality is the opposite, as no construction activity was taking place at or near the incident site.
“All BRT construction work begins only after obtaining an NOC from the relevant authorities. Whenever excavation is carried out, the site is immediately refilled and secured.
“The parking area where the incident happened is owned by a private store, and is located far from BRT construction activity. Therefore, linking the incident to Red Line is irresponsible.
“Since the project is being implemented with the support of the Asian Development Bank, strict safety standards are enforced at all construction sites and are continuously monitored. We will continue to cooperate with all stakeholders and maintain high safety standards at the construction sites.”
Committee
A committee headed by the city police chief was formed to investigate the incident. According to officials, the team discussed the registration of an FIR with the family, but the family has not yet agreed to proceed.
Officials said the investigation is ongoing, and further progress would be made with the family’s cooperation. The committee will fix responsibility and submit its report to the city police chief. A committee member visited the family’s home with a police delegation. They met the family and recorded their statements.
Incorrect claim
The claim about refilling the dug-up area where Ibrahim fell into the manhole has been proved to be incorrect. The spot outside the departmental store remains unchanged even after three days, with only small concrete blocks placed nearby.
The assertion that all excavated sections were refilled under official supervision has turned out to be false, as the location remains in the same condition.
Mayor apologises
Karachi Mayor Barrister Murtaza Wahab has said that he has apologized on behalf of the city administration to the family of three-year-old boy Ibrahim over this tragic death in an open manhole in Gulshan-e-Iqbal.
Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday night after visiting the family members, including the grandfather of Ibrahim, at their house in Shah Faisal Colony, the mayor said those officials who were supposed to respond to the incident did not do so. He maintained that he apologized to the family without indulging in any blame game, vowing that Karachi’s infrastructure would be upgraded.
“An impartial inquiry will be conducted, and anyone found negligent will face action. We will take structured measures to prevent such incidents in the future.”
“I am at a loss for words over the mother’s cries for help,” Wahab said after he condoled with the grieving family. The grandfather of the child asked the mayor to improve the city’s infrastructure.
After the meeting chaired by the chief minister on the incident earlier in the day, an inquiry had be conducted and several officials were being placed under suspension.
The officials being suspected include the relevant senior director of the KMC, the district assistant commissioner and the mukhtiarkar, the relevant engineer of the KWSC, and the District East SSP and DSP.
Wahab said citizens can call the number 1334 if they notice a manhole is without a cover. He denied any shortage of manhole covers, saying that 88,000 manhole covers have been provided and another 245,000 covers are available.
