SRINAGAR: An 8-year-old boy died by drowning in a water tank of a mosque in the Adarsh Colony area of Udhampur city last night, officials said on Friday.
The boy was identified as Muhammad Rizwan Wani, son of Muhammad Rafi Wani from the Batote area of Ramban district.
An official informed the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that the boy had left his home on his bicycle to offer prayers at Jamia Mosque in Adarsh colony and didn’t return.
“After sunset, when the boy didn’t return, his parents started searching for him and reached Jamia Mosque, where they found his bicycle outside the boundary wall. They made inquiries with shopkeepers and the mosque administration and found some traces near the water tank,” said a relative of the boy.
According to the Imam of the mosque, the child’s father found his slippers around Isha (late night) prayers inside the water tank, following which the search was intensified. “The boy’s father and other locals found him inside the tank, and after strenuous efforts, he was brought out,” the Imam said.
Officials said the boy was immediately taken to Government Medical College (GMC) Udhampur, where doctors declared him dead on arrival.
Originally from the Batote area of Ramban, the boy’s family had been residing in a rented accommodation in Adarsh colony for the last few years. The boy’s mortal remains were taken to his native village for last rites—(KNO)
