'Tragic': Boy,8, dies days after falling into borewell in Madhya Pradesh village

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Saturday announced a compensation of ₹4 lakh for the family of the eight-year-old boy who died after falling in a borewell in the state’s Betul area, about 170 km from the capital city of Bhopal. The eight-year-old fell into the borewell on December 6 and the rescue operations were launched soon after. Despite massive efforts, the boy could not be saved.

On Twitter, the Chief Minister condoled the death, as he said: “It’s tragic that little Tanmay - who fell into the borewell in Betul’s Mandvi village - could not be rescued despite the intensive efforts by the administration. I pray for the peace of his soul, and I also hope that the family gets strength in this hour of grief.”

“In this hour, the grief-stricken family should not think they are alone. The whole state of Madhya Pradesh is with them. A compensation of ₹4 lakh will be given to the family from the state government,” he further added, paying tribute.

The parents of the boy - Tanmay Sahu - had said that he fell into the borewell when he was playing in a farm on Tuesday. "The boy was rescued around 5 am on Saturday. However, he was declared dead," State Home Guard Commandant S R Azami, who was engaged in the rescue operation, was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

He was reported to be stuck at a depth of about 35 to 40 feet. Amid hectic efforts, earthmoving machines were used to dig a parallel tunnel.

On Friday, district collector Amanbir Singh Bains was quoted as saying by PTI that there was no response from the boy.

A video tweeted by news agency ANI showed the rescue teams taking the body - which was recovered on the fourth day of the operations - to the ambulance.

(With agency inputs)