SC seeks reply from Centre and States on plea to stop deaths in borewells

The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to Centre and all the State governments on a petition against the continued deaths of children who fall into borewells and the negligence shown by authorities to prevent such tragedies.

A Bench of Justice Arun Mishra and Justice MR Shah sought response from the Central and State governments, Union Territories and the NDRF on the PIL filed by advocate GS Mani.

The plea said authorities remain negligent about safety measures concerning borewells despite Supreme Court directions in 2010. The advocate cited several news reports of borewell deaths in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra over the years after the court issued directions.

Citing the failure of the government at the State and Central levels to comply with the Supreme Court 2010 guidelines to prevent bore well/tube well deaths, the plea said that such deaths have been reported across the country.

The plea was filed in October 2019 in the wake of the death of two-year-old Sujith Wilson, who got trapped in an abandoned borewell near Tiruchi in Tamil Nadu.

Not only Tamil Nadu State authorities failed to take any steps to prevent the death of small children who fall into abandoned or open bore wells and tube wells, but they have failed to implement or comply with the directions issued by the Supreme Court in this regard, the petition stated.

"After the 2010 Supreme Court judgement was passed, there have been several incidents clearly evincing the total failure of the government to do their part to prevent the death of innocent children from falls into such wells," the petition states.

Immediate, necessary action and punishment be ordered against erring government officials for non-compliance with these precautionary measures, it demanded.