Playing in his grandmother’s yard, one-and-a-half-year-old Saifan drowns in pond
Photo: Collected
A one-and-a-half-year-old child named Saifan has died tragically after drowning in a pond at Kachua in Chandpur. The incident took place at Tulpai Patwari Bari in ward No. 7 Sadar Dakshin union of the upazila at about 11:30am on Wednesday (21 October).
Saifan, who died, was the son of Osman, son of Mannan Commissioner of Lakshmipur Purbapara in ward No. 6 under Kachua municipality.
Locals said the child Saifan was playing in the yard of his maternal grandmother’s house in Tulpai village at about 11:30am. At that time, unnoticed by family members, he fell into the pond beside the house. Not seeing him after a while, family members began searching and at one point, seeing him floating in the water of the pond, relatives rescued him. He was quickly taken to Kachua Upazila Health Complex, where, after examination, the doctor on duty, Fahim Uddin, declared him dead.
Kachua police station officer-in-charge (OC) Md Azizul Islam Akash said a child has died after drowning in the water of a pond. If any complaint is received from the family, legal steps will be taken subject to investigation.
The numbers
The rate of child deaths by drowning in the country has long been alarming. According to the Second Health and Information Survey (2016), 14,438 children aged 1 to 17 years die by drowning in Bangladesh every year – The Daily Star Bangla reported this on 25 July 2023.
The district picture
A similar accident had taken place in this very Kachua upazila three days earlier. At about 1:00pm on Sunday, 18 October, two children drowned in a pond beside Sikdar Bari in Ujani village of ward No. 6 Uttar Kachua union of the upazila – Sadia (10), daughter of Rahim Hossain, and Samira (8), daughter of Billal Hossain, who had come from Chattogram to her maternal grandparents’ house on the Puja holiday – Dhaka Times 24 reported this on 18 October.
According to the Population and Housing Census 2022, the population of Chandpur district is 2,635,748 and the number of households 635,431; however, the district administration’s own website shows the population as 2,600,263 – the information differs by source.
