Increasing number of children drowning in Madhesh

• Two children who were said to be missing on June 17, were found dead in a water-filled pit near their home the next day. Among the deceased are 7-year-old Rahul Mandal and 8-year-old Ashish Mandal of Naraha rural municipality-3 Khoria in Siraha. According to Sushil Mandal, Rahul's father and Ashish's uncle, a deep pit was formed where the gravel was dug. The rains filled it with water.
• Dhanauji rural municipality-5 Bahuarwa of Dhanusha has a roadside settlement. Adjacent to the houses is a large pond on the west side. A water pump set has been installed at the west end of the pond. Muskan Khatun, Zeenat Khatun and Ajmeri Khatun, aged 11 and 12, reached the pump set in the hot sun last June 20. They used to bathe in the pumpset water the other day and jumped into the nearby pool that day. When they did not come out for a long time, a little girl who went with them informed the locals. All three were found dead.

These are some representative cases of drowning children in Madhesh recently. According to the data of Madhesh Province Police Office, 49 people including 39 children and 10 adults have drowned since last July, of which 12 have died in Dhanusha, 9 in Mahottari, 7 in Saptari, 6 each in Sarlahi and Rautahat, 4 each in Siraha and Parsa and 1 in Bara.

According to the police, in the last financial year 080/81, 185 people drowned in Madhesh province, of which 124 were children. The death of children by drowning is terrible. However, the work for safety and prevention has not been completed," said civic leader Vishnu Kunwar, the weakness of the parents is showing up, but the provincial and local governments have not been responsible.

Madhesh municipality and state government have started preparations for floods, cold waves, droughts, fires, hurricanes, etc., but they have been ignoring the cases of drowning and death in deep places where ponds, rivers, ditches and contractors have been randomly dug and left stranded. Sports and Social Welfare Minister of Madhesh Pramod Jaiswal admits that even though there are reports of drowning children's death, nothing has been done so far.

We have consulted with the police in this matter. Efforts are being made for awareness and prevention. This is a great loss. The provincial government will now move forward to stop this," he said. Every year, when a large number of children die due to drowning, the local government blames other agencies and turns away. Vidyanand Chaudhary, Chairman of Chinnamasta Rural Municipality of Saptari, says that all three levels of the government should be serious about drowning. We have done miking for awareness. But, even that is not enough," he said. "The road office contracts the road. The contractor digs and leaves the pit. Children die there because the water freezes.'

Open ponds, holes, pits or places with water should be protected and cordoned off, says Kunwar, a civic leader. 'The entry of children should be secured by measuring the depth of the pond,' he said, 'a single gate can be made by surrounding the reservoir and a red zone area can be determined as to where to go into the water.' The provincial government has demanded to bring a law. The parliamentarians have suggested that such incidents should be stopped by introducing water safety policies and laws. In last Tuesday's meeting of the state assembly, Congress chief whip Kuwarkant Jha demanded that the state government bring a program to prevent drowning deaths.

LOSPA MP Upendra Mahato alleged that the three levels of government are not serious about the safety of the common people. "National water security policy should be formulated and criteria for ponds and places to be mined for development should be set," he said. UML MP Dipendra Thakur said that even though children were dying due to drowning, the police and administration did not listen to them.