NDRF joins Army team in ops to rescue boy stuck in bore well

Mumbai: Ongoing operations to rescue a three-year-old boy who got stuck into a 250-ft deep borewell in Gondia district encountered difficulty due to presence of water even as the NDRF team reached the spot today.

Vivek Donode, who was with his grandmother as she took goats out for grazing, fell into the open hole of the bore well, dug only Tuesday, in a field last afternoon in Ranka village of Sadak Arjuni tehsil.

"The rescue operations as per guidelines of NDRF had started at 6.30 PM yesterday. It was difficult to see in the tunnel with the help of even powerful lights since diameter (of the borewell) is one-and-a-half feet. We used innovative method of putting CCTV camera with long cable in the bore well.

"With this we could see the status on the screen. In the camera only water was visible and the boy was not seen. Since there is water in the well, rescue operation is becoming difficult. Disaster team and Army did every effort to remove the boy but till morning (he) could not be removed," said Gondia district Collector Vijay Suryawanshi.

He said the NDRF (national Disaster Response Force) team from Pune reached by flight at 12.15 PM and they are doing their best.

Suryawanshi said two JCB machines, two crawler excavators, 1 rig vehicle were rushed to the spot yesterday itself.

The collector said the oxygen pipe was immediately lowered in the bore well within half an hour of the mishap. He said officials and Fire brigade team from Gondia were immediately rushed to the spot.

Suryawanshi said a huge mob of around 2000 people had gathered at the location and they dispersed only after "we informed them on megaphone about the efforts being taken by administrating. We are leaving no stone unturned to rescue the boy".

The collector said a strong action will be initiated against the farmer in whose borewell the boy fell. "We are also issuing guidelines to owners of all bore wells in the district," he added.