Bangalore: Baby plunges from mum’s arm to death

Bangalore Mirror

• Mother was feeding 18-month-old Armaan and using the window

 

Bangalore, 26 July 2011: One minute, Amritha Kashyap was happily feeding her toddler son at the window of the utility passage on the ninth floor where she lived. The next minute she was screaming as the one-and-a-half-year Armaan plunged to his death through 81 feet.

 

Amritha, a resident of Panduranganagara near Indian Institute of Management,had mixed a bowl of Cerelac for Armaan’s breakfast at around 9.15 am. Her husband Vishal, a techie, had left for work and her three-year-old daughter was busy. Since Armaan was a fussy eater, Amritha took him to the passage and opened out a window that offered a view to keep him engrossed.

 

She carried him around, coaxing him all the while to eat his food. As they approached the window, Armaan tried to wriggle out of his mother’s arms. Police sources said he leaned towards the window, unbalancing Amritha, and went over.

 

The last sight Amritha had of her son was as he hurtled at heart-stopping speed towards the concrete parapet on the first floor — at least 81 feet away. The security superintendent who reached the child rushed him to hospital where he was declared brought dead.

 

The parents are in deep shock and could not bring themselves to speak about the tragedy. This is the sixth balcony-related death in Bangalore in the last 10 months. According to a study conducted by Nimhans in collaboration with WHO, 24.3 per cent of patients brought to hospitals in the city with serious fall injuries are children.

 

According to Dr Pallavi Sarji of M S Ramaiah Medical College, the highest number of falls are among children less than four years. With the city opting for vertical growth, town planning authorities are yet to bring this under their ambit. “There is no specification on the height of the balconies,” says joint director of town planning, Thirakangoudar.