State authorities have learnt no lesson from frequent incidents of children falling into abandoned borewells and drilled wells.This despite the fact that two years ago Supreme Court had asked the State Governments to follow its guidelines on to avoid such tragic accidents.
However, so far not a single State has submitted any action taken report (ATR) to the Centre on safety measures to prevent children from falling in the open pits, said a senior official in the Water and Sanitation Ministry.
They are also being asked to give details on number of unused wells and borewells in their region. He said that the Ministry after the Supreme Court order in 2010 had directed State Governments to take appropriate action.
“We have been constantly writing to the State Government officials to send us action taken report in the matter. But unfortunately they are silent on the issue. Either they have not implemented the Supreme Court guidelines or just simply not keen to share the safety measures undertaken with us,” the official rued.
Thanks to the State’s apathy that it seems a long unending wait for the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) seeking follow up in the matter. Annoyed at the undue delay, it has been lodging complaints with the Ministry on the non-compliance of the State Governments and its concerned authorities.
With borewells and drilled wells repeatedly proving hazardous to kids, Supreme Court had come out with detailed guidelines according to which, district collector should be empowered to verify that rules are followed with right spirit.