Poison pit: Pirana’s toxic pool kills child

AHMEDABAD: For years locals had been warning authorities of rampant illegal oil and toxic chemical dumping at

Pirana dump yard

and its vicinity. On Sunday, a five-year-old child, Mohammad Sahil, who had accidentally slipped last Friday into a pit containing a deadly concoction while playing, died as the toxic chemicals injured his lungs severely. Sahil’s father Kayyum Ansari, a native of Uttar Pradesh, had shifted to the city 25 days ago for work. Ansari is a daily wager and lives with his wife, a daughter, and Sahil.


The boy was immediately shifted to

LG Hospital

where he was recuperating. But on Sunday doctors attending to him claimed that he had died as the toxic water had seriously damaged his lungs. The tragedy has left the family devastated. Ansari said, “I am in no position to talk.”



Dr Shailesh Prajapati, Asst RMO, LG Hospital confirmed the death of the child and said the case has been sent to postmortem to ascertain the cause of death.

On the fateful day, Ansari had gone out for work when Sahil was playing near their residence at A1 Colony near the solid waste dumping site. “Sahil’s death should not be treated as a mere accidental death case as is the fate for most medico-legal cases. For years together, the Pirana dump yard has been an illegal dump for chemicals and today it has claimed a small child’s life. This should not treated lightly,” said Kaleem Siddiqui, a social worker in Pirana.

Hospital authorities explained how they were desperately trying to induce vomits and medications were administered to neutralise the chemicals in Sahil’s body. The boy was kept under observation in the ICU. Siddiqui claims that Sahil might have slipped in a pit filled with chemical dump. A passersby had witnessed his fall and immediately rushed for his help. He was shifted to the LG Hospital in an auto as repeated calls for ambulance did not get immediate response, says Siddiqui.


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