A locality in South Kolkata is still reeling under shock, yet to come to terms with what happened on Friday. An 8 year old child while on his way to school was crushed to death. His father is battling for life at a government hospital. Souryaneel Sarkar was the only child to the family of three. The child is gone, father is at hospital and a shell-shocked mother couldn’t be kept alone at home and has been kept at a relative’s house. A locality where Souryaneel was born and growing up as everyone’s beloved, at Nabapally, Behala, and Souryaneels’ house today is standing tall, but empty.
A truck ran over Souryaneel on Friday morning, when he was on his way to school with his father. The child was trampled under the vehicle and the father sustained fatal injuries. The locals allege that the police let the truck driver flee. The angry locals soon retaliated and s that the while he was going to school for his exams with his father. Soon after the angry the locals attacked the cops, set several police vehicles on fire and vandalized govt. buses. Police forces were deployed in heavy numbers to curb the unrest and disperse the violent mob.
The father is the sole earning member of the family who has a grocery store at the Thakurpukur Market. He is now admitted to the SSKM hospital. The neighbors say that the truck ran over his left leg, when he tried to save his son. They fear that this accident might lead to the amputation of his left leg.
Souryaneel’s house is now locked from outside. The eerie silence speaks of the gaping void that the 8 year old has left behind. In a tragic turn of events, the Sarkar family’s world turned upside down on Friday morning. The mother is reeling from the shock of losing her only son and the father yet to come acknowledge his loss. A locality that dearly misses a child so full of life, spoke to team NTT and narrated the now treasured memories that they once shared with him.
“He used to be transfixed by stories of fairies and demons; I narrated many such stories to him every time he visited me. He loved to live in a fairytale land. Now, I do not know what to do with these stories”, recalls Mr. Arun Dutta, Souryaneel’s neighbor. The Dutta family is in denial, and still hopes that the little kid will come running to their house some evening.
Parents of other children who go to the school are now concerned about the safety of their children. Locals allege that rash driving, blatant violation of traffic rules are daily occurrences of the busy Behala Chowrasta area. Prabir Guha a shopkeeper at Behala Chowrasta says, “This is nothing new, accidents take place very often. Previously, we have seen several car accidents at this particular crossing". The others parents of children attending the same school are now concerned for their child’s safety.
Raja, an auto-rickshaw driver who ferries school children says, "The school has multiple gates but they only use the gate which opens up on the main road. Why they don't they used the gates towards the fields? Guardians standing in front of the main gate disrupt the traffic, which in turn maximizes the chance of such accidents". The police have arrested the truck driver and a case has been filed against the accused.
