CHENNAI: In the wake of a two-year-old boy falling into an open borewell in Tiruchy on Friday, experts and former PWD engineers said that lack of routine inspection of by Panchayat officials and little awareness among the public were the main reasons for such recurring accidents.
While a few such cases have been reported a year ago in the outskirts of Chennai, officials said there is more possibility for this to happen down South due to sedimentary soil type and lack of water in these borewells. "Beyond regions such as Uthukottai, the soil is loose and a borewell will easily cave in. Also, water is not found even at 600 ft in some places. Because of this, dry borewells are abandoned.
In places such as Chennai, the diameter of a borewell opening is less than six inches. And therefore, such incidents are unlikely to happen in that city," said a former PWD official, Thirunavakarasu S.
A senior official from the Water Resource Department of PWD said that lack of staff in the Public Works Department and no coordination between residents, local engineers, and Panchayat officials to close dry borewells are problems that need to be addressed immediately.
In 2013, a five-year-old girl fell into an open borewell at Arani in Tiruvannamalai. Similarly, in 2015, a three-year-old boy fell into a 300 ft borewell in Vellore district. In both cases, the child did not survive mainly due to lack of expertise and advanced equipment with fire and rescue teams.
Last year, an advisory was issued by the state government urging the public to close unused dry borewells. But many are yet to take these precautions seriously.
J Saravanan, a hydrologist, said that the callousness of the public and lack of inspection by village administration officers has led to the death of many children. "The public should have the common sense to close borewells if it doesn't yield water. They can simply take a large stone and close the hole. Panchayat officials such as VAOs and BDOs will also have to take up regular inspections," he added.
Chennai corporation officials said 350-odd community bore wells will be closed with solid metal covers and works are in progress to close all the open drains in the city by December.
Borewell contractors said they will ensure that borewells are sealed with cement covers when after project is complete. "As there will be a pipe inside the borewell, incidents of children falling inside will be impossible. It can only happen with abandoned wells without pipes and covers. Only the owner can be responsible for this," he said.