Rahul Sahu’s parents can’t believe their luck. For them, it’s nothing short of a miracle that their 10-year-old hearing- and speech-impaired son has come out alive after spending 104 hours stuck at 68-feet depth in a borewell.
The phone of Rahul’s mother Geeta Sahu has not stopped ringing and all she can blurt out are words of relief and gratitude. “I just met him in the hospital. He responded to me. There is a slight infection in his body since he was half-drowned in water for four days and some bruises,” she said.
Rahul was brought out of the borewell on Tuesday night and was taken to Apollo Hospital in Bilaspur via a specially created green corridor after being given first aid. “He has a slight fever but otherwise, his health parameters are constant. He had a meal of ‘khichdi’ and is responding well to treatment,” PRO of Apollo Hospital Devesh told News18.
The incident dates back to June 10 when Rahul went missing from his house in Pirhid village of Chhattisgarh’s Jahangir-Champa district. “After our afternoon nap, he started playing in the ‘aangan’ [courtyard] while I got buys with my stitching work. A while later, I looked for him but there was no word. The cover of the borewell was dislodged and I could hear his cries from inside,” Geeta Sahu recalled to News18. The 80-feet-deep borewell was abandoned by the family since it did not show high water levels.
The Arduous Rescue
District officials were alerted about the accident at around 2pm on June 10. Soon, the district collector and state disaster relief team reached the spot and sent a special camera down the shaft to ascertain the status of the boy. “His family members were called to encourage him and keep his spirits high. Juices and fruits like banana were dropped along with an oxygen pipe,” officials involved in the rescue said.
Immediately, three NDRF teams, including one from Cuttack in Odisha and one from Bhillai, were pressed into service. The local army unit lead by a Colonel-rank officer also joined the efforts.
The rescue team dug a parallel tunnel to reach Rahul. “Rocks slowed down our digging speed. Snakes and scorpions crawled out every few meters, posing an additional risk of snake bite to the rescuers or harm to Rahul,” an NDRF official said.
“Once we reached a depth of 60 feet, the rocks were so hard that the machines failed to crack them. Additional machinery had to be called in and we had no other option but to wait,” Collector Jitender Shukla said.
A rescue team with heavy machines from South Eastern Coalfield Limited Korba coal mines, adept at handling any untoward incident in underground mines, was pressed into action to overcome the granite rock challenge.
Using torch light and crawling through a horizontal tunnel in hot and humid conditions, the team finally reached Rahul after four days and he was brought out on a stretcher on Tuesday night. “I saw him only on the mobile screen when he was brought out. When he opened his eyes, I could only thank all the rescuers. Not for a moment did I think I would lose my son because everyone from the army, the collector, the CM and the rescuers tried relentlessly to get him out,” an emotional Geeta Sahu said. She could meet her son only after doctors examined him at the hospital.
Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh Bhupesh Baghel said the rescue would not have been possible but for the grit and bravery shown by Rahul. “I want to congratulate Rahul for his patience and bravery. The rescue team also did not give up. They worked non-stop for 48 hours, did not sleep, did not rest, it is incredible,” he told News18. Baghel is likely to visit Bilaspur on Wednesday to meet Rahul Sahu and his family and, according to officials, could announce state sponsorship of Rahul’s education.
“There is also an urgent need to fix liability for those who leave borewells uncovered. The CM could announce legal measures to ensure incidents like these are not repeated,” a Chhattisgarh government official said.
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