No words can console the near and dear ones specially the mother of three-year-old Ibrahim who fell into a manhole near NIPA Chowrangi and whose body was found only after 15 hours of hectic search mostly by people of the area near Sir Syed University of Engineering and Technology.
During this period the boy’s body travelled nearly half a kilometer downstream from the manhole which was located directly in front of a fashion store; this was a two-by-two-foot uncovered gutter with as is usual with such contraptions in Karachi no protective cover or barrier for pedestrians. As it was in the middle of a major construction project did not earn it any special attention and it was left unguarded like so many others.
This is not the first time that a manhole has taken a precious life mostly of children who in outlying areas of the city play around these gaping manholes and actually gamble with their lives. By the way manholes are not the only danger faced by these children. Stray dogs, fast moving vehicles like dumper trucks and water tankers too are hazards faced daily by these children. Every other day there is some incident and a wave of protests with solemn oaths by the concerned that steps will be taken to mitigate the situation but there is little change and while there is a lot of hue and cry at the untimely death of little Ibrahim chances are that with the passage of time the chorus of condemnation and vows of betterment will soon be forgotten, and it will be life as usual.
Manholes are nothing unusual around the world and they have been part of our world for thousands of years but they are maintained better in the developed nations and are properly covered. Manhole covers are considered intensely practical, functional objects. How safe are manhole covers in the West can be gauged from the fact that there are more than 246,000 manhole covers in New York City alone but comparatively very few incidents involving manhole covers. After the incident in Karachi there have been a lot of questions raised about the necessity of manhole covers. These covers provide a safe passage to the sewage conduits, which need to be opened now and then for maintenance and emergency purposes. Essentially, for this there is need for proper equipment under the guidance of experts. As we have seen during this recent tragedy there were neither experts nor equipment. Only groups of ordinary people trying to carry out the search on their own and the body was found only by a sweeper boy who has since been rewarded by the authorities. Highlighting the maintenance role of manholes the authorities in California have renamed manholes as Maintenance Holes.
How does a manhole whose primary function is to help maintenance becomes such a hell hole for the ordinary citizen. A primary route to this destination is theft. If the manhole cover is made of expensive material it is stolen. In Karachi, for example, many manholes are stolen by mostly drug addicts who live under the underpasses on many streets. This is however not the only reason. A manhole might have been removed for repair and maintenance. A good way to save manholes is to digitalize them so that the city authorities can keep track of them if they are stolen. A simpler way which as far as cash-strapped cities like Karachi might adopt and would be very effective is to use visible barricades, warning signs, etc, when there is an open manhole in the vicinity. The hundreds of open manholes in the city of Karachi without as much as a warning sign can only lead to disaster as is evident from the tragic death of little Ibrahim.
Children are under threat not only from open manholes but also stray dogs as is evident from daily stories of little children under attack from these ferocious dogs. The latest attack was recently in Rahim Yar Khan where a toddler had to be hospitalized after being attacked by a stray dog and succumbed to his injuries after two days. According to reports the two-year-old was playing outside his house when it was attacked by this stray dog.
Whether it is stray dogs or gaping manholes our children are at risk in the lanes and streets of the country and require immediate attention of the authorities or this situation will continue to generate heart -rending tragedies.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
The writer is a well-known columnist
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